The Two of Them
by HolleringHawk65
Summary: A look at Wesker and Rebecca's relationship throughout the years. Might change to M rating later...
1. Chapter 1

_**Rebecca**_

I was on edge. I felt like I wasn't good enough to be in this office; everybody else was older then me. I was surprised when Wesker had actually hired me, but he had and here I was.

I plopped down at my desk. It was six in the morning on my fourth day and I was still getting used to the hours.

I started the work that Wesker had left out for me. I felt more like a receptionist then a medic, but I hadn't gone on any missions yet. So I sat there, filing reports and reorganizing cabinets as I waited for the rest of S.T.A.R.S. came in.

At 8 o'clock sharp, in came Wesker. Today he was wearing a dark blue button up and black slacks, not to forget his signature black loafers and sunglasses.

I found myself watching him. I'd been at a good pace before he came in, but now he distracted me as he went about.

He passed at me and my stomach grumbled. I felt blush hit me full blown and I immediately looked down at the file I'd been trying to focus on.

"Rebecca, did you eat breakfast this morning?" he asked me, his hand in the corner of my desk. I smelled his after shave or cologne of whatever it was he wore and I realized how much I liked it.

Damn me for getting a job where my boss was the most handsome a man could be in his late thirties.

"No, I forgot," I told him, blushing hard. "Captain," I added quickly.

He glanced at the clock behind me. "Would you like to have breakfast at the diner with me?"

I had placed my hands on my knees and right now, I was squeezing them so hard my nails were white.

"If that's alright with you, sure," I told him.

He smiled at me. It was another moment to add to a steadily growing list where I wished I could see his eyes. I could only imagine they looked just as handsome as the rest of him.

The two of us left the department building and walked down the street to the diner.

"Good morning, Wesker," an elderly waitress said to the Alpha team captain as he walked in.

"Good morning Hilda," he said to her in return.

She looked at me and smiled. "Two today?"

He nodded.

I was nervous as we sat down at the booth table. The vinyl squeaked slightly as we did so. I felt myself blushing once again; I felt like I was a bumbling idiot.

I tried to busy myself by reading the menu. I noticed that Wesker didn't even have one, which made me feel worse and more nervous because that meant he was waiting for me to make up my mind.

Figures.

When Hilda came to get our drink order, Wesker simply ordered coffee and cranberry juice. Normal things.

_Wesker was normal._

Or, at the very least, he was when he left the office.

I ordered apple juice and Hilda left to get our drinks. I found myself biting my lower lip as I looked back at the menu. My stomach grumbled again, reminding me that I needed food.

Hilda came back and Wesker ordered first; a cheese omelet with a side of scrapple and home fries. I ordered buttermilk pancakes with a fruit salad and sausage.

I thought that we would be left with only the radio playing in the background to fill sound into our ears, but Wesker cleared his throat, causing me to look up at him.

"What brought you to Raccoon City in the first place, Rebecca?" he asked me.

I felt myself blink. "I'm not really sure. It's just kind of where my car took me," I explained to him, not wanting to go into a lot of detail.

He nodded slowly. I found myself looking down a his hands; the fingers were long and slender and looked skilled. I let my mind wander to what they would feel like in my own...

"Why were you traveling?" he asked me.

I was brought out of my daydream by his voice. "Traveling? Oh, that's, um, personal," I told him.

I was saved by Hilda returning with our food. Any further questions Wesker might've had were put aside as we began to eat.

I was slightly ravenous, which felt like it was embarrassing me further, but I noticed Wesker was done before me.

When we were done, Wesker got up. "I'll be right back," he told me before walking off.

Hilda came back to collect the dishes and dropped off the bill. I had already done some math in my head, so I figured that the twenty I had in my pocket would be enough.

I opened the receipt cover to make sure. I heard somebody clear their throat and I looked up to see Wesker looking down at me.

"You don't have to pay. I was the one who offered to come here," he told me.

I handed him the bill. "Thank you," I said to him, smiling a little bit. He smiled in return.

He paid the bill and we left. As we walked back to the police building, I felt myself walk closer to Wesker even though we were practically alone-it was a Thursday morning at quarter to ten. He didn't say anything about it, so I didn't move away.

He let me walk in first and I headed back to my desk. "Thanks again," I said to him as he passed me to go into his office.

He stopped and looked back. "You're welcome, Rebecca."

* * *

**_Author's Note:_** This is just something I started working on on my iPod. I figured I'd post it and more chapters are likely to come! As always, please review! :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Wesker**_

Sunday is the only day I take off regularly, despite the fact that if I did go to work, I'd have nobody's antics, especially Chris's, to bother me.

Sundays have always been special. It used to be that every Sunday I would go to the Birkins' house and the four of us would spend the day together. Now, with William and Annette always at the lab, I headed over to spend time with young Sherry.

Today was a rather cool day-mid to high seventies-and I had already mentally decided on asking Sherry if she would want to go to the park as I went up the walkway to the Birkin's porch. I only had to wait for a moment after I rang the doorbell for the large white door to open and reveal Sherry, smiling at me.

"Wesker!" she said into my shirt as she hugged me, "I'm so alone here."

I sighed and gently stroked her hair. Unfortunately, her parents' dedication to their project caused them to nearly never be home. I sometimes wondered if I was around Sherry more than they were.

I pulled away slightly, causing the twelve year old to look up at me with wide eyes, as if she thought I was about to leave her even though I'd just got here. I felt as though my heart had suddenly broken in half because of that look.

"Do you want to go to the park?" I asked her.

"Yes! That sounds wonderful!" The sad look that had been in her eyes was replaced by something happy as her smile became larger.

She went back inside for a pair of shoes and came back out quickly. The two of us walked to my car, Sherry practically skipping. Her antics made me smile and the happiness was infectious.

She turned on my radio which I do believe is only used when she was in the car. She turned it on to the rock station she liked. It was one of the few songs that I liked and knew-David Bowie's 'Space Odyssey.'

Sherry sang along to it softly. She didn't really know it, or believe it when I said it, but she had one of the prettiest voices I had heard.

I glanced at her at the red light before the park. Her feet were on the seat, her chin resting on her knees. I saw her eyes move, and then her whole head as she turned it to look on me. She gave me another smile and I returned it.

Neither of us said anything until we were out of the car and heading towards one of the fountains. She had come up and put her hand in mine.

"There's a question I want to ask you," she told me.

"Ask away," I told her in return.

"Why do people hurt the ones they love?" she asked me.

I stopped walking and looked at her, caught off guard by her question. "What's this about?"

She instantly looked down at the ground. "It's just that...Mom and Dad are never really around, but when they are, they say they love me. It hurts when they're not home; I don't feel loved."

"Sherry, your parents love you," I told her. When she had first asked that question, I had thought she was talking about something much different.

"I love you," she blurted out. She hugged me again and I hugged her back. "I love you more then I love them."

I sighed. There was no reasoning with her that she should love her parents, but at the same time, I enjoyed the fact that I was more important to her then her parents.

"I love you, too," I told the young blonde. More than she would ever understand.

Sherry pulled away and gave me a chaste kiss on my cheek before turning and rushing off to the playground. I was about to follow when somebody stopped me.

"Wesker, I didn't know you had a daughter." I turned around to see Rebecca standing behind me. She was dressed in what I assumed were her workout clothes and she had a light sheen of sweat on her face.

"Daughter?" I repeated. "Sherry's my goddaughter," I explained to the eighteen year old. "Blood family and I don't mix," I added.

She blushed, or the tinge to her cheeks might have been from her exercising. "Sorry, it's just that you two look so alike and close..."

"We are close," I explain to her. "Sherry's just not my blood. We are family, though, in every other sense of the term."

She smiled at me. "I'm happy for you."

"Happy? Whatever for?" I asked her; this was one of the few times I'd actually been confused. It was not a feeling I particularly enjoyed.

"I'm happy to know that you have a life outside of work. It's kind of surprising," she admitted.

"I used to have an extensive life outside of work," I informed her.

"And what happened to that?" she asked me.

"That's personal," I told her. Personal and in the past. Why did I even start to think about that? About Muller?

"Wesker?" I looked down to see Sherry. "Is she your girlfriend?"

I smiled. "Sherry, this is Miss Rebecca Chambers; she just started working for Bravo team," I said to the twelve year old. "Rebecca, this is my goddaughter, Sherry Birkin."

The latter looked at Rebecca as she stood next to me. "Rebecca, would you like to go get ice cream with us?"

I was about to scold Sherry for being so forward with the suggestion when I heard Rebecca laugh lightly. I looked at the young woman to find her smiling.

"I'd love to, but I have to take a shower first," she told us.

"Then we'll pick you up and we'll all go somewhere special," Sherry said. "Right?" she asked me as she tugged on my sleeve.

I couldn't believe my goddaughter was doing this. I had to think that she was too much like her father for her own good. But instead of telling them no, I smiled. "Rebecca, what's your address?"

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_ This chapter took me longer than I thought it would... I actually had another chapter done, but then I deleted it because I didn't like it...so I hope ya'll like this and please review!

~HolleringHawk65


	3. Chapter 3

_**Rebecca**_

I was a complete bundle of nerves as I left the blond duo and headed to my apartment. What was I supposed to wear on an outing with-

Wesker and his goddaughter.

I waited until I was in the apartment building to let out a squeak like sound and pull out my hair. This was asinine-why did I even stop to talk to Wesker? Why didn't I just wait til tomorrow to ask him at the office instead of seeming weird and awkward?!

I rushed up the stairs to my apartment. As soon as I had closed the door I was shedding my clothes. Wesker told me that they would be waiting for me outside of the apartment building at four-thirty. It was three-fifteen right now.

After my shower, and with a towel wrapped around me, I stood in front of my sparsely filled closet. I didn't know what I was going to wear-as the question from earlier was still going on in my head. What was I supposed to wear on an outing with my boss and his goddaughter?

I glanced at the clock-three-thirty-five. I had time, but not as much as I would like. I looked back at my closet, knowing that I was practically stuck in a corner in terms of fashion.

I sat down on my bed, letting my towel slid down. I put my face in my hands and, sighing, closed my eyes.

I jumped as there was a knock on my door. I grabbed a robe that was over one of the many boxes still in the apartment and walked out to the living room. I opened the door without checking the peephole and was met with Wesker and Sherry.

The first thing I noticed was that his sunglasses were pushed to the top of his head. I had to stop myself from gasping at the dark green.

"I fell asleep, didn't I?" I asked the two of them as I backed up. "I'm so sorry, just give me a few minutes to get dressed," I told them. I felt my heart racing...not to mention all the blood pumping throughout my body.

I rushed back into my bedroom, grabbed, and threw on the first things I laid my hands on. Looking in the mirror, I figured it would have to do; a red floral blouse and denim shorts.

I picked up my pair of sandals that I could actually walk in for extended periods of time and went back out to the living room. "I'm so sorry," I told them again. I realized Wesker was staring at me, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

"We're the ones that came to your apartment," Sherry reminded me.

"Not to mention a full twenty minutes. I apologize for letting Sherry rush in," Wesker explained.

I slipped my hands into my pockets. "It's fine, really. So where do you guys want to go to eat?" I mentally wondered if Wesker would want to go to the same diner we had before, or if there was another place that he went to when he was with Sherry.

"Um...what's the place with hamburgers and milkshakes?" the young girl asked Wesker.

"The diner near the police department?" he asked to clarify.

She nodded, giving him a beaming smile.

"Is that alright with you, Miss Chambers?" he asked me. I wasn't quite sure what was with the sudden use of my last name, but there it was.

"Sounds great to me," I told him.

* * *

As the three of us went into the diner, I chided myself yet again. Wesker seemed irritated with me, and the only viable reason is because I'd been asleep and not dressed.

Hilda once again sat us at the same booth table as before. And, once again, I was the only one who needed a menu. Choosing what I wanted was no easy feat either; Sherry was asking me at least a question a minute.

"Have you ever had a dog?" Two-a dalmation and a rottweiler.

"What was your first kiss like?"-the fact that I hadn't had my first kiss yet was embarrassing to admit in front of Wesker.

"What's your favorite color?" Dark green.

"Where have you lived?"

I closed my menu and tried to focus on the question. "Really, all over the place. East and West coast, north and south..."

"Is this the first time you've lived in the Midwest?" Wesker asked me.

"This is the first time I've lived in this state," I explained to them, "but I've lived other places in the Midwest."

Hilda came back and we all ordered. Wesker got a Coke-Cola and a charbroiled hamburger. On the other hand, Sherry got a chocolate milkshake, a hamburger topped with mac & cheese, and curly cheese fries. I got a root bear float and chicken tenders.

When Hilda came back with our orders, instead of walking away, she stayed by the table. "So are the two of you dating?" she asked us.

I nearly choked on my root beer and I saw that Wesker hadn't picked up his food. Meanwhile, Sherry had started eating her curly cheese fries.

"Rebecca is my co-worker," Wesker explained. "We're not supposed to date."

_Saved by the rules,_ I thought to myself.

"Oh, I see. Well, you three enjoy your meal," Hilda told us before walking off.

I glanced at Wesker one more time. He was looking down at his food, but not moving to touch it. I wondered if Hilda's assumption bothered him that much, or if there was something else on his mind.

I looked back down at my food. Suddenly, I wasn't so hungry anymore either.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_ Did it seem choppy at the end? Or rushed anywhere? Apologies if it did...I didn't really know how else to end this chapter.

Please tell me what you think!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	4. Chapter 4

_**Wesker**_

Me dating Rebecca? Who would've have _ever_ thought _that_? There's _twenty_ years between us!

I couldn't touch my food for a few moments as I kept repeating the mantra-_there's too many years between us, there's too many years between us._

I was old enough to be her _father_.

_Face it though, you wouldn't have allowed Sherry to invite Rebecca in the first place if you didn't care about her on some level, _I told myself_._

But it was clearly a mistake. Rebecca hadn't touched her food and her float was slowly melting. Before I could voice anything, Sherry pushed her plate of cheese fries over to me.

"Come on, have some! There's too much here for just me," the young blonde told me.

I pushed them slightly towards Rebecca before picking one up between my thumb and forefinger. Sherry giggled before taking a bite of her burger.

We ate in silence for the rest of dinner. Rebecca looked like rather pale, but didn't complain, but barely ate anything, just drank her float.

"Are you three getting any dessert?" Hilda asked.

"Peach pie!" Sherry said, eyes sparkling.

"I'm fine," Rebecca muttered as she pushed her float glass with the tip of her index finger.

"I'll have a slice of apple cake," I told the elderly waitress.

"You think I would know both of your orders like the back of my hand by now," she told me, smiling somewhat. She walked away, taking our dishes as she did so.

"Rebecca, are you alright?" Sherry asked her, scooching over and playfully poking her upper arm. The older girl nodded slowly.

I found myself swallowing. Seeing her like this-upset?-made me feel bad, even though I'm not exactly sure her being upset was my fault. It was possible that it was, but I couldn't think of why.

Except...

Was she upset that I had called her just a coworker and I said we weren't _supposed_ to date? No, there was no way that this rather innocent, hard working, eighteen year old girl liked _me_. Every other person in S.T.A.R.S. thought that I was an ass!

"I'm fine," she told Sherry. "Just kind of tired."

"Do you want me to take you home now?" I asked her before I could really think about.

She looked up at me, eyes wide-like she was _scared_. "No, you two enjoy your desserts," she said to me as Hilda came back with them.

"Do you want a box for that, honey?" she asked, gesturing to Rebecca's forgotten chicken tenders.

"Yes please," she said softly. Rebecca suddenly seemed so diminutive; innocent.

Thoughts ran through my head that shouldn't be there and I felt myself dryly swallow before I took another sip of coke and had the cake.

In between bites of her pie, Sherry was chattering away, talking about school and her house. I was quite sure that she knew every inch of the grand two story house, and she enjoyed talking about it to Rebecca.

The young adult looked like she was about to fall asleep but she continued to smile and nod, perhaps even inserting a comment every now and then.

By the time Sherry was done her peach pie, I was more than ready to go; I had paid the bill and was finished my apple cake and soda.

Sherry got up as soon as she was done, practically skipping to the door while Rebecca took a bit longer. It was only ten to six but she looked like she was about to collapse and fall asleep for a year.

I went over to her and wrapped my arm around her waist, supporting her until we got to my car. For once, Sherry didn't say anything in the car. I turned the music on so Rebecca might stay awake.

By the time we pulled in front of the apartment building, Rebecca had yawned five times. I got out and walked around to help her to her apartment.

She was more awake by the time we got to her apartment door. "Thank you for dinner," she told me as she put her hand onto the doorknob.

"You're welcome," I told her. She turned the knob, but hesitated before going inside. She turned to me, mouth slightly open. "About what Hilda said..." she began.

I felt myself tilt my head. "You mean us dating?"

"Yeah, about that..."

I frowned. "Miss Cham-"

"Rebecca," she corrected me.

"Rebecca, do you honestly think it would be a good thing for you to date _me_?" I asked her.

"I don't know," she practically whispered. "Maybe not date, but I like being around you."

"I like being around you, too," I told her. "But I'm more then twice your age and I'm your boss."

She looked up at me, light green eyes looking like they were about to cry. "Isn't age just a number?" she asked me, her voice wobbly.

Nearly any other person and by now I would have walked back to my car and taken Sherry home. But I still stood in front of Rebecca and before I could rationalize not to, I had cupped her face into my hands.

I didn't let myself stall furthermore as I pressed my lips to hers. My eyes closed as I took in the feeling of having her against me, in my hands.

When I pulled away, her cheeks were flushed red. She didn't say anything to me as she turned around and went into her apartment, closing the door behind her.

I returned to my car to find that Sherry had gone to the front seat. She smiled at me as I sat down on the driver's side.

"Is Rebecca alright?" she asked me.

"Yeah, she'll be fine," I told the young blonde. I wasn't sure how exactly I was going to sleep that night, but I guess I'd have to worry about that after I dropped Sherry off.

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**Once again, I feel like this was rushed and/or choppy but I hope you all like it thus far!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	5. Chapter 5

**_Rebecca_**

I closed the door and slid down to the ground. I could still feel Wesker's lips against mine-a tingly feeling that I almost wanted more of. No, not almost...I did want it. I wanted it _badly_.

I stayed on the floor a few moments longer, waiting for the butterfly fluttering feeling in my stomach to subside. It didn't.

I probably would've stayed on the ground if I hadn't heard a thud in my bedroom. I felt the blood freeze in my veins as I realized there was only one person I knew that would come into my apartment and not let me know.

I started to get up, but I felt numb all over and my limbs were like lead. I fell right back down onto the ground and I felt as my worst nightmare came and started dragging me to the bedroom. A cloth was placed over my mouth before I had a chance to scream. I felt myself lose further control of my body as I passed out.

* * *

"Rebecca?"

The smooth voice belonged to Wesker. It...it was soothing.

I saw images of the blond man, some with Sherry, some with other co-workers, but it was like a giant slideshow of the man I adored.

But the last thing I saw was him right after he had kissed me. In the brief second I had glanced with him, he had seemed embarrassed. To imagine him-Captain and founder of S.T.A.R.S.-embarrassed was...amazing.

It caused me to feel funny. Almost...amazed that _me,_ Rebecca Chambers, could cause _Albert Wesker_ to be _embarrassed_.

* * *

I woke up with my wrists bound to the headboard. _Not this again, please. Please, just let me go._

"Good, you're finally awake. I was starting to get worried there," he told me.

I went lax against the bed. Might as well stop fighting him.

My abuser knelt down next to me. "So who's that guy you were with last night? He your new boyfriend?"

I looked at him but didn't answer. Why should I tell him who Wesker was? It was none of his damn business.

He slapped me. "Answer me, girl," he snarled.

I closed my eyes. "Go ahead and hit me, Dad, I know it makes you feel so great and powerful."

Another blow, this times to the side of my chest. I cringed but didn't cry out. I wouldn't give him that satisfaction. Not yet.

More and more abuse came and my body started going numb again. I slipped into unconsciousness again. It was better this way.

* * *

**_Author's _****_Note:_ **First of all, I would like to thank everybody who has reviewed _The_ _Two of Them_ thus far. Getting a review notification is like getting a piece of candy for me!

Short and choppiness actually intentional this time! I know this may seem really weird not to mention kind of creepy, but please wait for the next chapter before you decide to stop reading or not!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	6. Chapter 6

**_Wesker_**

I glanced at the clock again. It was already ten o'clock in the morning and everybody but Rebecca was in. I mean, even _Chris_ had managed to get himself in at a slightly reasonable time for a Monday morning-I usually expected him at eleven thirty but he had surprised me today by coming in at quarter after nine alongside Jill.

I walked out of my office and doubled checked Rebecca's desk and found that it was _still_ empty. The papers were in the exact way she'd left them Saturday.

"Enrico, have you seem Rebecca?" I asked the Latino.

He jumped as I addressed him. As he turned around in his swivel chair to face me, he shook his head. "Sorry captain, I haven't seen her since Saturday morning."

I nodded and went back to my office. _I could just go to her apartment,_ I thought to myself, _but maybe she's mad at me, and that's probably why she hasn't come in yet._

Finally, the phone rang and I practically pounced on it. "Wesker," I said.

"Hey, it's Rebecca," she said. Her voice sounded raspy. "I have a sore throat, I can't come in today," she explained to me.

Part of me didn't believe that. "Alright, I hope you feel better soon," I told her.

"Thanks Wesker, have a good day," she said to me. Before I could respond, she had hung up.

It had all seemed very off to me. I hadn't known Rebecca very long but the part of her I did know... It's hard to explain. I just _knew_ something was wrong.

* * *

By the time lunch rolled around, I had firmly decided on going to the corner grocery store, buying tomato soup and flowers, and going to her apartment. Nobody questioned me as I walked out of the building.

I went to the corner market on the way to Rebecca's apartment. I parked the car, put two nickels into the meter, and then walked into the air conditioned building.

I found myself jittery as I walked up the stairs to her apartment. As I stood in front of her door, I took a deep breath to calm myself down. I raised my hand and knocked twice.

The door opened and Rebecca was standing there, barely meeting my eyes. Her own were glassy and as she talked her voice was soft.

"Wesker, you shouldn't have," she told me as she took the flowers and the foam cup of tomato soup from me. The way she said it wasn't happy; she seemed like she genuinely hadn't want me to come. "Thank you, though."

"How are you feeling?" I asked her as she started to back up.

"Uh, not much better. I probably won't be in tomorrow, either," she told me, looking down instead of at me.

"I hope that you get better soon," I told her.

She said no more as she went back in.

I stayed there for a moment, almost shocked. Was she really _that_ upset with me? And all over a _single_ kiss? People used to close agreements by _kissing_! What was _one_ kiss _between us_?

I was about to leave when I heard a crash from inside the apartment and Rebecca cry out. Without thinking, I tried the handle to find it already locked again. I stood back, drew out my gun, and took a deep breath before shooting the knob and kicking the door back. _The things I do for her_.

The sight inside surprised me. A chair was turned over and Rebecca was curled into a corner, a man standing over her. Red liquid that I could only hope was the tomato soup was all across the floor, along with the flowers.

The man looked over his shoulder and smiled. "You look old enough to be my brother. I bet you like tapping Reb, don't you?"

"If I were you, I wouldn't make such crude comments," I told him. "Who are you and what are you doing in Rebecca's apartment?"

"I'm her father," he spat. "I can do whatever the fuck I want with my daughter."

"What do you think gives you the right to abuse her?" I asked him as I heard her sniffle and hold her shoulder.

The man came over me. "What right do you have to question my judgement as a father? Who says little Reb didn't deserve what I gave her?"

I refrained from pulling something similar to what I would've done back at Umbrella-I have more seniority, I'm smarter than you, William I will hurt you if you don't get off me...-or at S.T.A.R.S.-Chris, stop acting stupid. Chris, put that down. Chris, get out of my office. Chris, please listen to me.

Instead, I took another deep breath. _Three;_ I started aiming. _Two;_ he was pulling whatever was in his pocket out. _One;_ I saw the glint of steel. _Zero;_ he didn't get the chance to do anything as I pulled the trigger.

He fell back, clutching his chest as he slumped against the couch. I went over to the phone and called the department. I told Jill what happened is as little words as I could. I hung up the phone and spared a brief glance at the dying man before kneeling down next to Rebecca.

I took her into my arms, letting her lean into my chest. She was trembling and tears starting to come onto my shirt as she cried. "Is it over?"

"It's over," I whispered. "You're safe now."

* * *

I gave my statement at the hospital. The man had had a weapon, was going to use it on either Rebecca or me, so I shot him. It was a perfectly legal, clean, shot.

I watched as a nurse cleaned Rebecca's wounds. She had several cuts on her stomach, among bruises on her shoulders and legs. They gave her instructions for washing the cuts and reapplying the gauze by herself, but I had a different idea.

After she was discharged, I walked over to her. I had brought her here, so in theory, I'd be taking her home as well.

"Wesker," the way she said my name caused me to inwardly smile. "I want to thank you," she told me. She wrapped her arms around me, _hugging me._

"You're going to hurt yourself," I said as I gently hugged her back.

She pulled away. "I'm not an idiot, you know that, right?"

"Yes, but I still want you to stay with me," I told her.

"You what? You want me to stay with you?" she asked me.

"I don't want you at home alone anymore," I explained.

"He's dead," she said to me. "My father's dead and he can't hurt me anymore."

"That's the issue," I told her. "The fact that you were alone-that he could hurt you _at all_-I don't want anything like that to ever happen again."

"I'm not something that you can command," she reminded me.

"I never thought you were. I just thought that you wouldn't want to return to the house with blood on your floor and couch," she told me.

She looked down. "I don't want to go back," she admitted.

I went closer to her, tilting her head up. "I don't want you to either."

She smiled softly. I tilted my head down to close the gap between our lips-which was rather significant, considering I'm a foot taller than her. But instead of going up on her tip toes, Rebecca pulled away.

"So... Where _is_ your place?" the young brunette asked me softly.

* * *

_**Author's** **Note**_**:** Because I had given you such a short chapter before, here was a longer one! I hoped you enjoyed it and please review if you've got the time!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	7. Chapter 7

_**Rebecca**_

I couldn't go into the apartment. I was jittery just thinking about. Not to mention my head was _still_ spinning because Wesker wanted me to live in his house.

"What do you need?" Wesker asked me.

"Soap and clothes," I told him.

"I'll be right back," he said to me as he got out.

I stayed in the car, trying to ignore the pain in my my midsection. I didn't understand how none of my ribs were broken, but the doctors told me they weren't, and had even added that the wounds weren't too deep, and I was (rather force-ably) inclined to believe them.

When Wesker came back, he put my duffle bag into my backseat.

"Thank you," I said to him. "Again, I mean."

He smiled as he buckled again. "You're welcome, Rebecca. It's the least I could I do."

"You're allowing me to stay at your house! I wouldn't call that the 'least' you could do," I told him. He didn't reply, but instead turned on the radio. I sighed and leaned against the door. "Now I see what everybody else means."

"And what do they mean?" he asked me.

"That you're impossible to get along with!" I snapped at him.

"It's not impossible," he told me. "I just don't make it easy."

"And I don't get _why_. What's so great about being alone most of the time? You shut yourself up in that office of yours, from what I hear you never are present at office parties or the Burton's barbeques. Maybe if you were more friendly-or more _open_ to friendship-your co-workers would like you _more_," I told him.

"I don't need them to like me," he said.

"In theory, the only thing humans _need_ is food, water, and shelter from the elements. _Companionship_ makes the road to the end more bearable," I explained.

He was silent as he drove to the outskirts of Raccoon City. For somebody who was nearly always the first one at the office, he sure did live far away. I refused to say anything until he talked to me again though, so I didn't bring this up.

"Did you live with your mom?" he asked me, finally breaking the tension.

"Yep."

"And you moved around a lot because you were trying to get away from your father?"

I looked over at Wesker. He had his sunglasses on and he was looking at the road, so he wasn't really paying attention to me. I bit my lower lip as the question rang through my head.

"Yes," I said softly.

"Where's your mother now?" he asked me.

"Next to her mother, father, and baby brother in New Jersey," I told him.

"I'm sorry," he said as we turned into a long driveway.

I said nothing as I went back to resting my head against the window. Because of the air conditioning, it was already cold again. I briefly closed my eyes at the feeling before we stopped.

It was smaller than I thought it would be. I had half expected a gigantic mansion, but this was a rather quaint, two story, blue house. The windows had white trimming and the shingles were grey; it had a kind of quaint cottage feel, while still keeping it a house.

"It's nice here," I told him as we got out. "Not to mention quiet."

"It's peaceful to me," he explained, going up to the front porch and unlocking the door.

Inside seemed more Wesker-ish. Sparse furniture, few personal touches, and a color scheme that consisted of dark brown for the floors, mostly black furniture, silver or grey when it couldn't be, and white walls.

"Here's the guest bedroom," Wesker told me as he opened a door in the upstairs hall.

Inside seemed like it was the only place in this house with real color. The floors here were a lighter brown, the walls were a faded red, the furniture was medium brown,and a patchwork quilt was thrown across the bed with matching pillows.

"I get the funniest feeling that somebody used to live with you," I told him, trying to be playful.

Something akin to a smirk appeared on his lips. "Before Sherry was born, Annette and William would fight a lot. She would come here to cool off and recuperate."

"So you're close to both of them?" I asked. I hadn't questioned how Wesker got to being Sherry's godfather, but I had assumed he was friends with her father. I hadn't even thought about her mother.

"William and I used to work together," he explained. "And Annette has always been kind to me."

"Lots of people _try_ to be kind to you," I told him.

"It was in a different way," he said softly.

I bit my lower lip. "I guess you don't want me asking what that different way was?" I asked as I put my duffle down next to the bed.

"I would prefer if you didn't," he told me.

"Okay then," _that answers that._ "Is it alright if I take a bath?"

"Did the nurse say you could?" he asked me.

"Uh...she never said not to," I explained to him.

"Rebecca, I am not your keeper nor do I ever intend to be. If you wish to take a bath, the bathroom is the next room over. If you need me, I will be in my study downstairs," he told me before turning around and walking out of the room.

"Thank you," I told him. I almost wanted to hug him again, but he seemed kind of irritated with me, so I didn't bother to try.

I knelt down next to the duffle bag, unzipping it to see some of my jeans, shirts, two or three pairs of pajamas, and even a skirt, along with the obvious underclothes. I found a robe in there as well, so I only bothered with a thin tank top and short shorts as my pajamas. I took a bar of soap and my shampoo and went into the bathroom.

I stripped, leaving the small pile of clothes next to the sinks. For a moment, I was suddenly faced with a predicament. The gauze was new, not to mention finished off in the back. I tried to find where it ended with my fingertips, causing an ache in my shoulders. Finally, my fingertips caught the edge, and I started tugging on it. I was glad that, after an at least five minute ordeal, the white material was off. I quickly located a steel trash can and threw it away.

I jumped in the shower, quickly doing my short hair with my shampoo and doing a once over on the rest of my body with the soap. Afterwards, I walked out and gently dried myself off with a towel that had been hanging on a rack.

After drying off, I sat on the edge of the tub and turned on the hot water, letting it fill about two thirds of the way. I slipped in, sighing as the heat soaked into my skin.

I relaxed and I ended up closing my eyes.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Now, let's think. Rebecca + Tub + asleep + Wesker in Study = semi interesting next chapter! I hoped you liked this one and please leave a review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	8. Chapter 8

**_Wesker_**

_Don't do it_, I tried to tell myself. _Don't make her get mad at you._

But I ignored my conscious and knocked on the bathroom door. "Rebecca?"

A moment later, I heard her cry out and, flashing back to what had happened at her apartment, I opened the door without thinking. I wasn't sure if I regretted it or not as I saw her leaning over the sink, naked except for water going down her back.

"Are you alright?" I asked her. To my own ears, my voice sounded strained.

"What? Yeah, I'm fine. I just hit my foot getting out of the tub," she told me, and I would've thought she was unfazed by me walking in on her if her cheeks weren't pink.

"Oh," my hand rested against the wall as I found myself leaning against the wall, staring at her. She turned her back to me to get her robe, covering most of her skin from my eyes.

"Was there something you needed?" she asked me.

"No, I was just curious about what you were doing; it's quarter to five," I explained to her.

"Sorry, I guess I fell asleep again," she told me, smiling a little bit as she turned around.

"It's fine," I said to her. "Do you need help with putting the gauze back on?" I asked her, having noticed that the white material was absent from her skin.

"That would be nice," she replied.

"I'll be right back then," I muttered as I went downstairs to the medical supplies I kept. I grabbed a roll of gauze and went back upstairs.

Rebecca had taken off the robe and put on her underclothes. I stopped short, suddenly unsure of myself as my mind started fabricating events. She looked at me, a slight frown on her face. "Are you alright?" she asked me.

"I'm fine," I told her, going behind her. I let out a slightly too loud sigh as I looked at her back.

"Are you sure everything is alright?" she asked me, looking over her shoulder at me, frowning fully now.

"In a way. I hate to say this, but you need to take this off," I told her, my index finger on the side of her bra.

"Why?" she asked, her voice suddenly soft.

Without thinking about it too much, and trying to not let her peppermint shampoo 'bother' me, I let my fingertips go to her stomach, touching the mainly shallow wounds. "Two of these," I paused to lightly touch them, "go under this," my other hand touched the opposite side of the bra I had before, "and it moves. That means it irritates your injuries and prolongs the healing stages."

"Then take it off," she muttered.

I retracted my hands and pulled back slightly to unhook the clasps. I slowly pushed it off her arms, leaving her top half bare. I ran my fingertips up and down, causing her to sigh; maybe even in pleasure.

_Why do I like that sound so much?_

Before I could steer myself further off course, I grabbed the gauze and begun to wrap it around Rebecca as tightly as I could without hurting her. Unlike how the nurse had done it, I had brought it up and around her neck to cover the wounds that went further up.

When I was done, I told myself to walk away, even though I wanted to lean down and kiss her neck. I even found myself wanting to hold her in my arms.

_These_ **_emotions_** _are going to be the death of me_, I thought to myself. "Do you need anything else?" I asked her, my voice husky.

"No, I don't think so. Thank you for doing that for me," she told me, folding her arms in front of her chest, trying to cover what I'd already seen. I noticed her cheeks were quite pink by now.

_If she wasn't eighteen, if she wasn't in Bravo, if she wasn't somebody I had to look at every single day, she might already be in my bed. But maybe I wouldn't be able to make it downstairs. Maybe I'd just set her on the counter and..._

"You're welcome," I said to her. My thoughts had probably only taken two or three seconds to think, which meant the lapse was short enough that she probably hadn't noticed it. "I'll be back in my study if you need me."

I left the bathroom and walked down the stairs, heading for my sanction. As I sat down in the chair behind my desk, I closed my eyes. Why was I letting myself get close to her? What was the point? I shouldn't...but, then again, should doesn't mean will.

I was trying to work on some papers when I heard a knock on the study's door. I looked up to see Rebecca, back in her robe, standing in the doorway.

"I was wondering if we could have dinner now," she said softly. "I haven't had anything since last night and most of that was..." She looked down, eyes closing.

My legs carried me over to her. I wrapped my arms around the smaller girl and held her to me. She closed her eyes as she rested her head against my chest.

_Stop it,_ I told myself. _She's just going to die and what then? You'll be left alone. So pull away._ **_Pull away_ _Wesker_**.

But I couldn't, especially as she looked up at me. Her bright green eyes were killer as I looked down at them as she wrapped her arms around me. I bent my neck down as she stood up on her tippy toes and kissed me. I turned us around and pushed her against the wall; her legs wrapped around my waist and she kissed me harder, tugging at my hair in response. I growled as I pulled away for air.

I leaned down and kissed her neck. She moaned and the tugging on my hair became harder. I groaned and found myself pressing into her with my body while also pressing her against the wall even more.

My mouth claimed hers again. This time, I found myself not letting up until the point that she might be starting to slip unconscious. When I pulled away though a smile was on her lips and her eyes were only half opened. She still hung onto me, reminding me of the koala bears Sherry loved, except..._cuter._

"Wesker," she said softly. "I..."

"Is something wrong?" I asked her.

She smiled. "It's just that before we continue, maybe we _could_ have dinner?"

I slowly put her down. Self control was slowly restoring itself, despite all I wanted to do was make love to her. I completely disentangled myself and pulled away, smoothing the back of my hair as I walked towards the kitchen. I heard Rebecca's soft footsteps follow me.

"What do you feel like having?" I asked her as I went over to the fridge.

"Anything you got is good," she told me.

I moved things around to figure out what I had. I closed the fridge door after figuring out I had nothing even akin to leftovers and sighed. "How do you feel about macaroni and cheese?"

She smiled. "I'd like that."

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_I had fun writing this chapter, and even tried my hand at some (slight) lemon stuff. Did I do alright? Please review if you have the spare time!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	9. Chapter 9

**_Rebecca_**

"What are you _doing_?" Wesker asked me, returning from his study.

I was sitting on top of the counter, next to the stove, as I waited for the pot of water to boil.

"Waiting," I told him, smiling.

He came forward slowly, like a panther. I loved that he didn't wear sunglasses in his house because now I could see his eyes. Those absolutely luscious, dark green, eyes.

He stood in front of me, a perfect blond eyebrow arched. "What are you waiting for?"

"The water to boil; I'm hungry," I explained to him.

"Why don't you go relax on couch? I'll do this," he told me.

"Come closer first," I said to him.

After a moment, he hesitantly took a step forward. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. I felt him tense against me right before he removed my arms from him and pulled away.

I bit my lower lip before sliding off the counter and retreating to the living room, feeling as stupid as one can get.

A few minutes later and Wesker came into the living room, carrying two large bowls filled with mac & cheese. He handed me one before sitting on the other end of the leather couch.

He turned on the TV, but I could tell that he wasn't really paying attention to it. Of course, I only knew this because at least once a minute I was looking over at him. Somehow, he didn't notice it, or, at least, didn't comment on it.

When I was done, I got up and went into the kitchen. I put away my dishes before going back to the living room.

Wesker had put his bowl-still half full, by the way-on a side table. He was reclining back on the couch, his eyes closed. I was led to assume he was asleep, or at least trying to, because he had lowered the volume on the TV.

_Just go upstairs. Don't look at him and go upstairs._

He just looked so...relaxed. It seemed so unlike Wesker that I wished I had a camera to take a picture. But I didn't, so the best I could do was stand there and take it in.

I walked around and sat back on the couch, but this time closer to Wesker, trying to be as silent as I could. I slowly laid down, putting my head on his lap. It felt safe to be there, with him.

I closed my eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

I woke up in the bed upstairs, the quilt loosely tucked around me. Sun was shining in through the window, warming the bed and me. I looked around the walls for a clock and was slightly stunned to see a coo-coo clock.

I sighed as I saw it was six o'clock. _Might as well get up now,_ I told myself as I slowly got up. As I was standing up and stretching, I noticed my robe was lying on top the set of drawers. I stared at it for a second before getting ready for the rest of the day.

* * *

As I walked downstairs, I became aware of rather good smells from the kitchen. I stopped and peered around the wall, kind of like how characters in a cartoon would.

I felt myself nearly lose my balance and fall right on my face as I saw Wesker.

His back was to me, but it was better like that. I could freely stare at his muscled back. His black pants-the same kind of pants I think he wears every day-were slung low around his hips.

I straightened myself and stepped into the kitchen. "Good morning," I said to him.

He glanced over his shoulder, briefly smiling at me. His sunglasses were back on, unfortunately, but the shirtlessness made up for that. "Good morning, did you sleep well?" he asked me.

"Very well, thank you. What about you?" I asked him as I walked over to the stove.

"Well enough to survive a day at work," he told me. "Go sit down, breakfast is almost ready."

* * *

When the two of us walked into the office at eight fifteen, I was full of scrambled eggs and potatoes and the idea that today would be like every other day and that I would be doing paperwork.

However, apparently this was not planned to be the case.

Wesker opened the door for me and I walked in. Surprisingly, nobody was there; I could already tell that Wesker was going to verbally bite their heads off when they all got here.

"Surprise!" Practically everyone from S.T.A.R.S. popped up from behind desks, startling me so much that I backed up into Wesker.

I felt like a deer in headlights, not to mention that I was utterly confused. I looked up at Wesker for any indication of what was going. All he did was shrug.

Jill came over to me, her left hand slipping into my left. "It's your first week at S.T.A.R.S. party!" the brunette told me before whispering, "and Barry's barbeque got cancelled on Friday, so we needed a party.

I smiled. It almost felt good to know that there was another reason.

So instead of doing work that wonderful Tuesday in July, we all goofed off. I got to know everyone's names, and I talked to Jill, Chris, Forest, and Richard a lot.

At five o'clock, where it seemed like half of S.T.A.R.S. was tipsy or drunk-they'd started drinking at about noon-people started to leave. By six o'clock, it was just Jill, Barry, Enrico, Wesker, and me. The three men were talking in Wesker's office-mind you, where _he'd_ been all day-while Jill was talking to me about some shoes she'd seen on sale.

"Re_becca_," she half whined.

I had been thinking about Wesker... _I guess I have to stop being so distracted._

"Earth to Becca!" Jill said, waving her hand in front of my face.

"I'm listening," I told her. "Leather pumps, originally one seventy, now eighty-eight."

"What color?" she asked.

"Blue," I replied, smiling.

She smiled back at me. "You're right. I have to ask you, what's going on with you and Wesker?" she asked me.

I was actually surprised that she hadn't asked me sooner. Despite that, I hadn't had anything planned. I had no idea what I was supposed to say.

"Nothing is going on," I told Jill. "He just didn't want me to be alone."

"So nothing has actually happened between you two? Like, no breakfast at the diner? Or meeting his goddaughter?" she asked.

"I ran into them at the park while I was running," I explained to her. "Where did you hear that anyway?"

"An old birdie named Hilda. She wanted to know _all_ about you; she said she hadn't seen Wesker with anyone in _six_ years; imagine that! No sex for _six _years," the brunette told me, a smirk on her lips.

In the next minute, Enrico and Barry came out. They both said their good-byes to us before leaving. I looked over to the door of Wesker's office to see it closed once again. I sighed, putting my face against my jaw.

"Do you want me to stay until he gets out?" Jill asked, bringing her left foot up onto the desk next to her.

"I guess," I said softly. "Though that might not be until midnight."

She shrugged. "I'm willing to stay if you're willing to have company," she told me.

"Thanks," I muttered.

Jill leaned over and hugged me. "I just wanted to let you know you're braver than I am," she whispered into my ear.

I pulled away, frowning in confusion. "How am _I_ brave?"

"For putting up with what you did," Jill told me.

"Oh...I'm not brave for that," I said. "I'm a coward for not do anything about it."

Jill tucked stray hair behind my ear. "You made through it though," she reminded me.

I smiled slightly. "Only because of Wesker," I reminded her.

At that moment, he came out of his office. "Rebecca, are you ready to go now?" he asked me.

I slid off my desk. "Yeah. Good night Jill, see ya tomorrow," I told my new friend.

"G'night, Rebecca, Captain," she said to us as we walked out.

"Did you have fun?" Wesker asked me as I got into his car.

"Yeah, lots. I noticed you stayed holed up in your office," I told him as he sat down and started the car.

"If it helps, I wasn't talking work with Enrico and Barry," he said in return.

"It doesn't really. You could've at least _tried _to be around everybody else."

He took a deep breath before speaking again. "Do you want to go to the Burton's barbeque with me Friday?" he asked.

For a moment, I was stunned into silence. "You'll actually go?"

"Yes."

"And socialize?"

"Yes, Rebecca, just answer _my_ question," he told me. I loved how his voice got lower as he talked to me.

I smiled in satisfaction. "Why, yes, of course I'll go with you.

By the light of the street lamps, I saw Captain Albert Wesker smile. I'd seen him smile with Sherry, but with me it felt...different.

It was wonderful.

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**I know this is a long-ish chapter for me, and I just want to let you know that the lengths probably will continue to vary somewhat. Thank you again to everyone who is reviewing-I really appreciate it!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	10. Chapter 10

**_Wesker_**

Wednesday and Thursday passes by quickly, normally, and uneventfully.

I still couldn't get over the fact that Enrico and Barry had practically cornered me and told me that if I was really going to have Rebecca staying with me, I at least take her to one of the barbeques.

While it was annoying to admit they were right, they were. So here I was, going over to Barry's desk as he started getting ready to leave.

"Barry," I said. The man instantly straightened and turned around.

"Captain! What do you need?" he asked me.

"I was wondering of I could bring my goddaughter. She has nothing to do over the summer," I explained to him.

"Sure you can! I'm sure she'd love to meet my girls, if she hasn't already. I guess I'll see you three later then?" he asked me.

"I suppose you will. Have a good day until then, Barry," I told him.

"You too, Captain!" he told me before walking out.

I went back to my office to finish my work. I had started the habit of waiting until the last person had left before going out and asking Rebecca if she was ready to go.

I checked at five o'clock to see Rebecca talking to Richard. I found him rather harmless, considering I knew he had a girlfriend.

I sat back down at my desk, staring at a photo Jill had given me out of jest. It was of Rebecca in a basketball uniform-apparently they'd been able to convince her to join the R.P.D. team.

_I should throw it away. I'm already getting too attached._

_But...what if __**she**__ survives?_

* * *

An hour later found Rebecca, Sherry, and I parking on the Burtons' driveway. I'd only been here twice before, but it was the same, quaint, house you'd expect to find a family of four living in that it was before.

As it turns out, Sherry did know Barry's daughters and rushed out of the car to see her friends. At least I knew she wouldn't be sulking in a corner of the backyard the whole time.

"I still can't get over the fact that you had no sweets in your house," Rebecca told me as we got out.

"Do I look like a man to eat sweets?" I asked her.

"So you're telling me that in your whole thirty-eight years of life, you've never had a sweet?" she asked me.

"I didn't say that, I simply asked if I look like a man that eats sweets," I told her.

"I guess not...I mean, maybe licorice, at the very least?"

"Rebecca, the last time I had a sweet was when I was twenty-three on Valentine's Day," I told her.

"Who were you with?" she asked me.

"That's the point; I wasn't _with_ anyone," I told her.

I heard a quiet "oh" escape her lips as she walked around the house to the backyard.

"You made it!" I heard Jill say to Rebecca.

The younger girl simply nodded and smiled. "Uh, do you know where I can put this?"

"I'll take that," Kathy, Barry's wife, said as she came over to her. "You must be Rebecca; I'm Kathy."

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," the brunette told her.

Kathy smiled before coming over to me. "It's good to see that you actually came to one of these again, Wesker, wasn't the last time two years ago?" she teased.

"I believe it was," I said to her.

I found myself following her as she put Rebecca's dessert-blondie bars with M&M's-she turned around to face me. "She seems like a nice girl."

"She is," I told her.

"And young."

"Eighteen and a half," I confirmed.

"Barry told me about her father," she said.

"I'm sure he did."

"And that you were the one who shot him."

"What was I supposed to do, Kathy? Back up and let him do whatever he wanted?" I asked her.

"No, I'm saying _you care about her_ for you to have been there in the first place," Kathy explained.

I was silent for a moment as my mind raced for a response. "Rebecca is a friend, but she's also my co-worker."

"And yet she lives with you," Mrs. Burton reminded me, smiling, before she turned around and walked towards her husband. I stood where I was for a moment, not sure if I should be angry or not.

"Captain, are you alright?" I turned around to see Redfield, beer in his hand, frowning slightly.

"Please, Christopher, call me Wesker. We're not at work right now," I reminded him.

He smiled. "Then call me Chris," he said.

* * *

Surprisingly, I had a good time. It was also a good thing to see Sherry with girls around her own age.

It was ten o'clock when Rebecca came over to me as I was talking to Enrico. As if she was a child, she came over to and tugged on my sleeve as she asked me if we could go.

All I had to do was find Sherry-which was proving to be difficult.

"Daddy!" Moira called, running across the lawn. "Polly fell into the creek and Sherry went to try to get her and...and..." Tears were streaming down the young girl's cheeks.

As I went over to her, my heart was hammering in my chest. I'd be dead if something happened to Sherry-Annette and William would inject me with some incurable disease from some third world country. Or maybe I'd shoot myself to spare Annette the obvious hassle it would be to get William out of the lab.

"Where are they?" I asked Moira, placing my shaking hands on her slim shoulders.

"I'll take you," Barry told me. "Kathy, go get the rope."

By this time, Richard, Rebecca, and Chris had heard what was going on and they left with us. Rebecca came over to me, her hand sliding into mine. I subconsciously started squeezing it.

"It's gonna be alright," she told me. "I promise you."

The creek had no trees around it, allowing the full moon to shine down on the water. But I wouldn't have called it a creek. The bank made a steep drop, around eight feet down, to a body of flowing water probably five feet wide and who knows how deep it was now.

"Daddy?" Came a weak voice.

"Polly? Where are you?" Barry asked.

"Right here," she told him.

The concerned father went over, kneeling at the edge. If he leaned over just a little bit more, he'd probably fall in. "Honey, grab my hand," he told his daughter.

The only thing I could think as I walked along was: _Where the hell is Sherry?_

As if reading my mind, the freshly rescued Polly spoke. "Sherry...she saved me. She pushed me up onto the ledge, but then she lost her footing. I-I don't know where she is."

"Chris, Richard, tie the rope around me and put me down," Rebecca told them.

I turned around, eyes wide. "What? No, _you're_ not going down there,"i told her.

"I'm ninety-three pounds and I'm a medic. If Sherry's hurt, I don't know anyone else who would be better able to help her while still able to get out of this," the brunette said defiantly.

I was about to shoot something back when I knew she was right. Anyone else would be too heavy for the rope to withstand, unless it was Kathy or Jill. But I wasn't about to suggest that, especially since Jill was back at the house. She was right, though, about if Sherry was _hurt_...

Rebecca hadn't waited for my response and the rope was already around her waist. Both of the men had their hands firmly around the rope as Rebecca held it and started going down.

Rebecca started calling Sherry, and then so did Kathy and Barry. All I could do was keep pacing back and forth until I had had enough. "Barry, does this," I gestured to the edge of the bank, "let up down stream?"

"Probably, we've never really looked," he told me.

"Then I guess I'll let you know," I said to him before turning around and walking along the back, calling for the blonde.

_This is all my fault. Nothing can ever just go right, can't it? Shows me not to try to do anything good, ever._

* * *

**_Author's Note:_**Well, there's that. Thought I would put in some more drama; nothing should _ever_ be simple for Wesker ;)

Please review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	11. Chapter 11

_**Rebecca**_

_For being July, the water is freaking cold._ "Sherry!" I called out again, my voice shaking as badly as the rest of me by now.

"Chris, let go!" I suddenly heard Richard yell. I looked up just in time to see Chris, along with part of the bank, tumble into the bank.

I was jerked under the water, completely submerged into it. I surfaced, searching in the dark for Chris, calling his name.

"Rebecca, are you alright?" Barry asked.

"I can't find Chris!" I wasn't sure if my eyes stung from tears or the cold water.

Something brushed against my leg; wet denim. I went under the water and grabbed it discovering it was Chris's leg. I felt along, finding his shirt and pulling it above the water.

"Chris?" I shook him as much was I could even though I knew it wasn't helping matters. "God damn it, wake up!" I told him.

I looked around, trying to find a place to pull him up; I saw that we were a lot further downstream than before. I tried swimming and pulling him with me to the other bank. After my struggle, I finally felt rocks under my feet.

With a surprising surge of strength, I pulled him out of the water. My heart was racing as I searched for his heartbeat. I pressed my lips to his to give him air; he started coughing as I pulled away.

"Chris, are you alright?" I asked him.

"Yeah, I think so, what about you?"

"Just a bit banged up," I told him.

"Becca, your shirt is red," he said to me.

I looked down at my once light green shirt to see he was right; I had splotches of red all over my shirt. "I'll be fine," I said to him.

"Rebecca?" I heard someone say; I quickly recognized the voice to be Sherry's; I got up and started searching for her again.

"Sherry!?"

A second later, thin arms wrapped around me. I hugged her back, knowing I was really crying now.

"Are you alright?" I asked her, kneeling down in front of her. It was hard to check for injuries here; there were more trees. I took her back to the bank, closer to Chris. He gave me a thumbs up before I directed my full attention back to Sherry.

"I'm fine, except my toe hurts. I think it's broken, but it'll heal," she said.

I hugged her again. "Thank god," I whispered.

"Becca?" I heard Chris say as I stumbled back. I fell back into his arms, and the last thing I saw was him looking down at me.

* * *

"You're an idiot," I heard Wesker's smooth voice tell me.

"What happened?" I asked, opening my eyes to see the bright lights of the hospital around me. "Are Chris and Sherry alright?" I asked him.

"They're fine. Sherry broke her left big toe and Chris is at work," he told me.

"What day is it?" I asked him.

"Saturday. You've been unconscious only since last night."

"What happened?" I repeated.

"Barry and Richard found me after they said Chris fell into the 'creek.' We went around the creek and found Chris holding you while Sherry was sitting a little bit off."

"I can imagine who you were happier to see," I told him.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" he asked me.

"You care more about Sherry then you do me," I said softly.

"I was worried about _you_," he told me. "I was relieved to know that Sherry was alright, but seeing you unconscious and _bleeding_ was not something I _enjoyed_ seeing!" he said. I think this is the first time I've seen him lose his cool. "And you're even more of an idiot if you think I don't care about you."

I didn't say anything for a moment-what does one say to that? But I didn't have to say anything as he leaned over, cupped my face, and kissed my lips softly.

"Do you want to go home?" he asked me after he had pulled away. "I brought you some clothes from home."

"Yeah, I'd like that," I told him.

"Alright, I'll go get the nurse," he said to me, getting up and walking out of the room.

As he left, I looked around. I was attached to anything except the heart monitor, so I figured I should wait, so I wouldn't set off the alarm.

The nurse came in, bustling around. "You're very lucky they found you when they did," she told me. "I didn't tell this to Mr. Wesker, but any longer might've put you in a dire state."

"Excuse me?" I heard him say.

The nurse flushed red. "Oh, nothing Mr. Wesker," she said before quickly leaving.

"I hate hospitals," Wesker muttered under his breath. "I'll let you get ready," he told me before stepping out.

I slowly got off of the bed, my chest and stomach hurting. As I took the hospital gown off, I saw that some of my wounds now had stitches. I sighed as I dressed in a white undershirt, thin plaid overshirt, and a denim skirt. I slipped into my flip-flops before leaving the room.

"Are we going to the office now?" I asked him. "It's only eleven o'clock; you could probably get some work done," I told him.

"Do you want to go to work?" he asked me in return.

"Not really, it's just that I thought _you_ would want to..." I said softly.

"It's not always about me."

"It's just that you're the one with a car," I reminded him, "and sometimes people just have to compromise on things like these."

"I'm starting to think you're on drugs," he told me.

"Why's that?" I asked him.

He shrugged as he opened the car door for me. I sunk into the leather seats as I took a deep breath of the car-it smelled like Wesker. _Pure_ Wesker and I freaking loved it.

We drove home, the radio filling the air; otherwise it would've been utter silence.

"One of these days, the drive home won't be so awkward between us," I told him. I glanced over at him, having taken up my usual pose of leaning against the door.

"Or you'll simply get start driving your own car again," he told me, a smirk on his lips.

I fell silent again. Getting the keys would involve going back to the apartment.

"Yeah. One of these days," I repeated before leaning against the door once again.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Did I make Wesker seem mushy? I find myself straying down the OOC path, or at least to my own mind. Please review (good and/or bad)!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	12. Chapter 12

**_Wesker_**

The two of us went to the Birkins' on Sunday. What I hadn't expected was for William and Annette to be there that day.

"Rebecca!" Sherry said, rushing off of the couch. She threw her arms around her, smiling.

"Hey, how are you?" she asked her.

"Fine, how are _you_?" the twelve year old asked her.

"Yes, Sherry told us that you blacked out," I heard Annette say. The sound of her voice caused me to jump slightly. _It's alright, it's __**just Annette**__, she's not going to bite me_.

"Oh, you must be Mrs. Birkin," Rebecca said, extending her hand. "I'm fine, thanks for asking."

"Please, call me Annette," she told her. "I really don't know how to thank you for saving Sherry, except well, thank you."

"Oh, it wasn't really me. Honest. Thank Chris, if anyone."

"The buffoon nearly got you killed," I heard myself say.

"It wasn't his fault that the _ground_ gave way," she shot back, looking up at me. The look on her face made me smile.

"Either way, you were the one that found her," Annette said. "Would you two like something? The three of us just made some brownies."

"William is here?" I asked her.

She stopped for a second. "He's asleep now. Work's really taking its toll on him."

It wasn't the words, or how she said it, but the way she looked up at me. Fear. Fear for her husband and I wasn't sure how I should react to that.

"Come on Rebecca!" Sherry said, grabbing her hand and leading her towards the kitchen. Sometimes I wondered if that girl could read minds.

I looked down at the couch. Annette followed my gaze and sighed before walking around to sit down.

"How's the research going?" I asked her.

She shook her head. "Just don't. I don't feel like talking about it," she told me.

I sat next to her. "Talk to me about something you want to then," I told her as I wrapped my arm around her shoulders. She sighed and leaned into me.

"Sherry's growing up so fast. I feel like we're missing out on everything," she said.

"I'm sorry," I told her.

"There's nothing you can do about it, right? Unless you've secretly figured out a way to stop time or aging."

I was silent for a moment, causing Annette to look up.

"Wesker?" her voice trembled.

"Just some modifications on G," I said softly.

"That can _stop aging_?" she asked. "Did you tell William?"

"No, of course I didn't."

She got up. "You're using _his_ virus, but you didn't tell him?" her voice was rising.

I stood up, quickly placing my hand over her mouth. "Hush, love, Rebecca is S.T.A.R.S., remember?" I said to her.

She pulled away. "I can't believe you."

"What did you want me to do?"

"What do you mean? You could have never left Umbrella! You could've *stayed* and _helped_ Will," she said to me. "Not running away."

"I didn't run away," I told her.

"You _left_ and we didn't hear from you for _three_ years. I don't know what else to say." Before I could try to say something, try to explain, she walked away. "I'm going to bed," I heard her mutter.

I got up and went into the kitchen. I was met with the sight of Rebecca and Sherry pouring syrups over vanilla ice cream and the whole thing of brownies.

Sherry looked up. For a moment, a smile was on her face, but then she noticed that her mother wasn't there. She didn't say anything, but I saw it in her eyes that she was disappointed.

And god damn it, it was _my_ fault.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Short chapter, but it works. I figured I should just have Annette in here to sort of complicate Wesker a bit more. But, he cares about Rebecca more by now ;) Hope you enjoyed it and please review!

Oh, and that part about G... I've never really understood the whole virus thing, so sorry if my info is a little (or a lot) off. And I think it says on theerily that Wesker left Umbrella in 91 (or something like that), so...

~_HolleringHawk65_


	13. Chapter 13

**_Rebecca_**

"Becca!" Chris said as I walked into S.T.A.R.S. on Monday. "I've been thinking about how I could repay you, and I've finally figured it out."

I raised my eyebrows. _Please don't let him say he'll take me out to dinner. Please, please._

"I'm taking you to the shooting range!" he told me, a triumphant smile on his face as if it was the greatest thing in the world.

Wesker had just walked in. He'd been even more quiet than usual, and last night he'd basically holed himself up in his study as soon as we got home. It made me wonder what had happened between him and Annette, but he seemed in such a bad mood I wasn't even going to attempt to ask.

"Finally, you've seemed to come up with a good idea," he told him.

Chris seemed to stop, his eyes widening. But he quickly recovered as his smile persevered through his apparent confusion. "Thanks, Cap'n! Becca, do you wanna go now?"

"Sure," I told him. "I'll be right there." I quickly went over to my desk and set down my bag before going over to Chris. The two of us went to the shooting range, and I wasn't sure if I should be excited or nervous.

Chris handed me a gun, as well as headphones, telling me what it was, but I couldn't really remember what it was called. The first thing he did was try to get me into a good stance. He put his hands on me in an attempt to do so, but I instinctively shied away.

"Are you alright?" he asked me.

"I just...Just tell me how to stand," I said softly to him.

"Shit, I forgot; Becca, I'm sorry. I should warn you now that I'm a forgetful idiot," he told me, trying to smile a little bit. I tried to as well, but...

"I know you mean well," I told him.

"I try. C'mon, I better start trying to teach you."

It went rather smoothly after that. I'm not a really bad shot, but I know I'm not the best. We broke for lunch, and when we came out of the shooting range I was surprised to see Wesker out of his office. He didn't say anything to me-he was talking with Barry-and he continued not to say anything as Chris and I left to go to a cafe.

"So is it...do you have nightmares about it?" he asked me as we were sitting down.

It took me a second to figure out what he was asking about. When I did, I looked up at him. "I haven't recently. I think it's because I know he's really gone this time," _because of Wesker, _I reminded myself.

"I guess it's helpful to not be there, right?"

"Yeah, I'm really grateful for Wesker," I admitted to Chris.

He was silent for a moment. He looked like he was about to say something but the waitress came to take our orders before he could. I ordered a Caesar Salad and a Dr. Pepper while Chris ordered Mountain Dew and a burger.

"You and Wesker..." As Chris said the three excruciatingly short, simple, words, he messed around with a napkin with the tip of his finger.

"We're not having sex, if that's what you're wondering," I told Chris. I felt defensive for some reason.

"It's just that he's..."

"He's what?"

"Protective."

I felt myself frown. "No, not really. I mean, we're friends."

"That are living together."

"You live with Jill, don't you?" I said in response.

_"We're dating,"_ he reminded me.

I bit my lower lip. "Can't you just stop with this? Yes, we live together. Maybe he's protective of me; I haven't really noticed. You're protective of your sister, aren't?"

"She's my _sister_! And, you know what, he's old enough to be your _father_!"

The words only took a second to settle into my brain. When they had,I fumbled for cash in my pocket and then slammed it down on the table. "I'm done with this. See you later."

Instead of going back to S.T.A.R.S., I went to the apartment building. I was done with everything; Chris and Jill thinking I was sleeping with Wesker, Wesker seeming to give me the cold shoulder.

So here I was, opening the apartment door. _Of course it had never been locked..._

They must've had cleaners come. There was no blood on the couch or the floor and there was a strong stench of bleach present.

For a second, I just stood there. I slowly closed the door behind me, half expecting something to pop out of the coat closet.

I felt my heart beating faster and faster, and I realized maybe something was wrong with me. It wasn't just nightmares, like Chris thought. It was every waking moment that I was scared. I wasn't supposed to be scared anymore. My father was _dead_.

_Get in, get out,_ I thought to myself. I quickly went to my bedroom to find my keys, but I was stopped short.

It felt like screams were echoing over and over again. I covered my ears, trying to block it out, but it wasn't working like that. It was all just over and over again as I kept reliving those hours.

"Rebecca? _Rebecca_?"

"Stop, go away Wesker," I muttered. "Just stop..."

"_No_." Strong arms wrapped around me, bringing me to his chest. I tried pushing away as it felt like my throat was closing up.

He held strong, his hand tangling themselves in my hair. "It's alright. Just breathe, Rebecca," he told me.

I put my head against his chest, sobbing. "Why are you here?" I asked in between the tears.

"There were only so many places you could've gone," he said into my hair.

"Why are _you_ here?" I repeated to him.

"Because I care," he told me. "Let's just call it day and go home, alright?"

I pulled away. "No."

I rubbed my eyes with my palms and looked at Wesker. For the first time I'd seen him, he looked like he was-or had been-_worried_. His hair wasn't as gelled as it usually was and it looked like it had been thoroughly run through by his fingers.

"No?" he repeated.

"No," I confirmed. "I'm not going home with you."

"So where are you going to go? Or will you stay here and start having another flashback?" he asked me, getting up and crossing his arms.

"I'll sleep in my car and take showers at the station. It won't kill me," I explained to him.

"You're an idiot," he told me, an edge to his voice.

"I'm just so sick of everybody thinking that we're having sex, or we're in a relationship at all, and criticizing me because of a god damned age difference!" I yelled.

He came closer, cupping my face into his hands; something he had to bend down to do. "Age shouldn't be a deciding factor in whether or not we become something," he whispered before kissing me.

For some reason my whole train of thinking just deadlined. Completely and utterly as I let him kiss me.

He pulled away. "And I've never cared about what Redfield or Valentine said," he told me before kissing me again.

My eyes closed as I lost myself into his kiss.

"I want my car," I muttered against his lips as he pulled away slightly.

"I'm driving," he said to me.

"Deal."

* * *

**Author's Note: **So, that was that... Um, so what's probably gonna happen is one or two more chapters pre-RE0/original, just to let y'all know :)

I wanted to thank everyone who has review, followed, and/or favorited! It means a lot to me to get those notifications :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	14. Chapter 14

**_Wesker_**

_Two more days and then this fantasy of playing house will be over,_ I thought bitterly. It was an un-welcomed thought, I realized.

Was I going _soft_ because of an eighteen year old? I glanced at her as she read a book. Unlike most nights, she was sitting close to me, but we weren't touching.

Her face had a thoughtful look as she bit the inside of her cheek. She voiced nothing, but her emotions could be plainly seen on her face.

After a few minutes, I looked back at the television, watching Jeopardy. It was one of the few shows I actually enjoyed watching, and despite the fact that I could get easily annoyed when I didn't know one of the topics, it also served to learn interesting tidbits.

"Wesker," I heard Rebecca say to get my attention.

"Yes?"

"Earlier, when you said age shouldn't matter... Did you mean that you might consider a relationship with me?" she asked.

"Rebecca, we already _have_ a relationship," I told her. "But if you are referring to an _intimate_ relationship, yes, I would consider it." I refrained from mentioning that I had, in fact, already considered every possibility and every scenario I thought I could-which means there were quite a lot-but I was positive the outcome would be basically the same.

Rebecca would refuse to be on a side she would immediately see as corrupt and evil. Telling her about Umbrella, explaining _my_ position and expect her to feel the same way she does for me now would be like asking a lame horse to finish well in the Kentucky Derby.

"Really?" she said softly.

"Yes. But I want to make a bargain of sorts," I told her.

"Okay...Tell me what it is."

I turned myself fully towards her. "We will refrain from having sex until after your first real mission, providing that you don't land in the hospital again."

"And if I do have to go to the hospital?" she asked.

"Then we wait until after you come home and are completely healed," I explained to her. I knew she couldn't tell, but it almost felt as though every single word I said weighed down on me. While there was a chance that she would make it, what was the chance that she'd even want to be with me? Especially if she somehow found out the truth...and knowing my luck, she would.

Maybe I should have simply said no. Should have told her to find someone more in her age group.

Maybe I should've just let her sleep in her car and take showers at the station and presumably either eat at the diner or microwave food in the break room.

Maybe I should just stop doubting myself.

"Can we still kiss?" she asked me.

"Yes, of course," I said to her.

She closed the book and came over to me, straddling my lap. The way she did it made it clear that she was unsure of herself, but I wasn't about to stop her.

She leaned down and kissed me; my fingers went to tangle themselves into her short brown hair.

That was basically our night. If we weren't kissing, Rebecca would have her head on my chest and we would talk about trivial things. I managed to get her to talk more about herself rather than allow her to ask me questions about something I would have to lie about. I hated lying to her for some reason. It was just another exclusive group that she was included into.

First, it had been that she spent time with Sherry-and Sherry liked her.

Then, it had been the group that was exclusively to people I cared about, of whom there were only three, including Rebecca.

And now the no lying group, which only has two.

I glanced at the clock. "You should get to bed," I whispered into her ear.

"I should," she confirmed, talking into my shirt.

I kissed her forehead right before she got up. "Good night."

"G'night, Wesker, see ya in the morning," she told me as she walked up the stairs, her hips swaying slightly as she walked in front of me.

* * *

Tuesday morning passed easily. Unlike what I had expected, Rebecca continued to go to the office with me. However, unlike most days, I didn't go in with her.

"I have some errands I have to do today," I explained to her when she questioned me.

"Oh, alright. See you later then," she said to me. I gave her a quick, chaste, kiss before she got out.

I waited until Barry parked in his spot before getting out.

"Mornin', Cap'n," he said to me. "Here are the keys to my truck."

"Thank you, Barry. I'll make sure it has a full tank of gas upon return," I told him.

"Hey, you look different today. What did you do with your hair?" he asked me.

"No gel," I muttered. "Didn't feel like playing with it this morning."

"Ah, I see. Everyone like you has those days. What do you plan to do with my truck anyway?" he asked me.

"Just moving some furniture," I told him.

"Want help?"

"No, I'll be fine. I need you to stay here and make sure Chris doesn't be an ass to Rebecca," I explained to him.

"Consider it done. Bye, Cap'n," he told me.

"Good bye, Barry."

Ten minutes later and I was walking into a certain apartment. The smell of bleach tickled my nose just as much as it had the day before, so I told myself I would be quick with this.

_Why am I even doing this? She'll be dead in a few days,_ I thought to myself for what felt like the hundredth time-in all truth, it was actually the twenty-seventh time I had reminded myself that Rebecca would mostly likely be deceased on the twenty-fourth of July, if not sooner.

Before I started dismantling the furniture, I sighed and ran my hands through my hair in a mix of frustration and annoyance. It felt odd for there to be no product in it; soft and bendable.

_Like an eighteen year old's heart_.

For once, I actually wished that Jill was there so she could drown out my thoughts with her gossiping.

* * *

It was noon by the time I drove down my driveway with the furniture rattling in the bed of Barry's truck.

I found myself driving at a crawl when I saw another car in front of my garage. I put the truck in park and sat there for a moment.

"Annette, what are you doing here?" I asked her as we both got out of our respective vehicles.

"Just came to talk," the blonde told me.

"Instead of spending time with your daughter?"

She rolled her eyes. "Sherry was happy enough to be dropped off at S.T.A.R.S. to talk with Rebecca."

"She's not something you can pass off when it's convenient," I growled.

"Well, I wouldn't have had to do that if you had been in your office like you usually are."

"What do you want?"

She glanced over my shoulder to look at the truck bed. "I see you're taking playing house even farther."

"That's none of your concern."

"You remember what happened the last time you got involved with somebody younger than you? What was her name again? Muller or something?"

I tensed. "Don't bring her up."

"Why not? Albert, I know what you're doing and it's not good."

"Focus on your _husband_ before you try to 'fix' me," I told her, anger rising.

She looked at me. "Please, think of what you're doing."

"I know damn well what I'm doing."

For a few moments, we just stared at each other. In almost pained me to think that fifteen and a half years ago, we were in a relationship and she would've laughed if I mentioned that William had a crush on her.

"You know, I'm actually jealous of her," Annette admitted, breaking the silence.

"You have a family," I reminded her.

"I know, it's just that if you hadn't said no all of those years ago...it'd probably be _our_ family," she told me.

"You should probably go pick up Sherry," I told her.

She sighed, glancing down. "I guess I should. I guess this is good-bye?" I couldn't help but notice how defeated she sounded.

"It is," I confirmed.

She hugged me. "Thanks for the memories," she whispered into my chest.

"Thank you for Sherry," I said into her blonde hair.

She pulled away. "She'll really miss you."

"Everyone leaves eventually."

"Maybe they'll return?" she asked hopefully, reminding me of the Annette I had known way back when.

"Not to here."

She sighed. "I love you, Wesker; all three of us do. We'll really miss you."

"I know; I'll miss you, too."

She didn't say anything as she sat back into her car, started it, and left.

I stood there for a moment before I set about taking the furniture inside.

* * *

_**Author's**_ _**Note:**_I'm almost excited to get out of the pre-RE stage! *fist pump* I hoe y'all are liking where this is going and please tell me what you're thinking about it :)

Oh, an even though it's not cannon to the story, do you guys know who the other person is in the 'no lying' group? Anyone even wanna guess?...

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed! Really appreciate it ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	15. Chapter 15

**_Rebecca_**

"I don't get it, what's down here?" I asked Wesker. "And if I fall, I'm gonna be pissed."

He chuckled; the sound came from right next to my right ear. "Just trust me. You're not going to fall."

I sighed as I took another step. He had blindfolded me and I was left to carefully-not to mention slowly-make my way down the stairs to the basement.

Another step told me that I was actually off the stairs. I was about to take off my blindfold, but Wesker's hands around my wrists stopped me. "Let me," he whispered softly.

He undid it, letting it fall down to the ground. Right after that, he wrapped his arms around my waist and lighty rested his chin on my left shoulder.

"Oh my god."

"Do you like it?" he asked me.

"This is what you've been work on all day?" I asked him, looking around. It was practically all of my furniture, separated into sections. All of my pictures from the apartment were on the walls.

"Yes," he told me. "Hopefully it wasn't for nothing."

I turned around, lacing my fingers behind his neck and kissing him. "I love it," I whispered.

He smiled. "It can be your own place," he explained to me.

"Thank you," I hugged him.

* * *

Never had I imagined that the man who had done all of that that-had spent a whole _afternoon_ driving furniture back and forth, had taken me out to breakfast during my first week, dinner with his goddaughter, had shot my father, had offered his home to me-would betray S.T.A.R.S. like he had.

"Are you alright?" Barry asked me, breaking the silence between the four of us.

"No. Wesker's dead and it turns out he was leading a double life," I reminded him. _Not to mention the fact that he had __**shot **__at me. Well, you know what? Fuck him. Should've known something was off..._

"You couldn't have done anything to change what had happened," he assured me.

I was just waiting for Chris to say something, but I think it's possible that he was still in shock. After what had just happened, I wouldn't be surprised if none of us would ever get over this.

Eerie silence ensued, even when we got to the station. I took a shower there, changing into a spare clothes that I had placed there Wednesday. After that, I sat down at my desk, starting to file Billy's 'death' report.

It was 'only' late afternoon, but Barry had already left, Chris was in the process of leaving, and Jill was still in the showers. I think Brad was still in the hanger.

Oh, and everyone else was dead.

"Hey, where are you staying tonight?" Jill asked me.

"Home," I told her. "Where else would I go?"

"It's just that..."

"That's where Wesker lived, too? Big woopty doo; he moved all of my furniture over there, and I'm not staying in an empty apartment," I told her, slightly irritated.

Jill stood in front of the desk. "Look, I get that you two were together in some way. But that gives you no fucking right to be any more pissed off than the rest of us, got it? Those were _our friends_ that we watched _die_; people _you_ only knew for _three_ weeks," she spat.

I didn't say anything for a moment. "I'm sorry."

"Get some rest; we'll have to explain this whole mess tomorrow," she told me, reaching over to pat my shoulder.

"Sleep probably would be a good thing," I muttered. I put the report in a folder before I put it into my bag. I realized then, with a sinking feeling, that my car was at Wesker's. His was here though. I'd seen it in the lot. All I had to do was find his keys; surely he hadn't had them on him when...

Before I even went into his office, I saw a glint of metal in the bowl on my desk. I went over and picked up the keys. Had he known?...

No, there was no way. It just happened that he had placed them here. Pure coincidence.

I fingered the metal as I walked out; contemplated things as I unlocked the sleek black car, putting my bag on the passenger seat.

For a moment, I didn't move to adjust the seats or the mirrors. I just sat there. I knew I was on the verge of completely breaking down, but if I did that, there would be no one to save me.

Why hadn't I just left? I could've gone away with Billy and left S.T.A.R.S. behind. But I hadn't known then that it was _Wesker_ behind _everything._ I thought that I'd be able to get out of the living nightmare and go home, Wesker there to comfort me.

But he was the _cause_ and I wasn't sure if I'd ever be able to forgive him.

* * *

Eventually, I was able to drive. I went home, going in through the front door. Since I'd already taken a shower, all I did was go upstairs, switch into a pair of pajamas, and laid down on my bed. I wished more than anything else in the world that I wasn't alone.

Somehow, fate was on my side. I was wide awake as it started raining outside, and still awake when the doorbell rang.

At first, I thought it was my imagination. Then, when it happened again, I slowly got up and went to go downstairs. I opened the door, not bothering to check to see who it was. It could be another Yawn, for all I cared.

But what I saw was much more pleasant. In an abandoned puppy kind of way, at least.

"Sherry, what are you doing here?" I asked her.

"I needed someone," she said, throwing her arms around me. "I can't be there anymore."

I hugged her back. "I'm sorry honey," I told her.

"Please don't kick me out."

"I won't."

"Will Wesker?" she asked me.

"Sherry, I have to tell you something," I told her, taking her to the couch. I saw her wide eyed stare. I sent a quick prayer that this girl wasn't a mind reader.

I took her hands into mine. I could feel her pulse quickening, anticipating what was to come.

"Wesker's dead," I told her. And it was in that moment that Sherry started bawling and saying in between her sobs that it was impossible, that he was invincible and a _hero_, I realized I couldn't accept the words, either.

Wesker _couldn't_ be dead. It just seemed so...impossible.

I held Sherry, trying to comfort the twelve year old to the best of my abilities. But I was only six years older and two hours ago, all I wanted to do was break down, too. But in the past three days, I'd changed to the extent where I could be strong enough for Sherry, or at least until she fell asleep.

* * *

In the morning, I called the Birkins' house. As it rang for the fifth time, I didn't think anyone would pick up, but then the sixth ring was stopped right in the middle.

"Hello, this is Annette Birkin," the woman said.

"Hi, Annette, this is Rebecca Chambers."

Silence for a moment. "Right, Bravo's medic."

"Ex-medic, but yeah. Sherry showed up here last night," I explained.

The line went static-y for a moment as she sighed. "I figured she would. I'll be there soon."

"Don't be in a rush, she's still asleep," I explained to her.

"I have to be at work soon," Annette told me.

"I'll drop Sherry off later. Or maybe she could stay with me until I figure out my plans," I told her.

"Plans? You're leaving?" she asked me.

"Yeah, with S.T.A.R.S. being disbanded and Wesker..."

"I had heard a little bit of that. Sounds like bull if you ask me."

"But I wasn't. And don't play that game with me," I all but snarled. I hung up the phone. "Bitch," I muttered.

I couldn't figure out what to do. I knew Jill had said something about coming clean about what had happened, but who was going to listen to me; an eighteen year old medic for Bravo team? No, I wasn't even gonna try.

I started making M&M pancakes, using the the candy I had leftover from making the blondies for the Burtons' barbeque. That felt like a year ago, even though it had only been last Friday.

I was just flipping the second pancake when Sherry came in.

"Good morning," she said to me.

"Mornin'," I answered.

"It smells good," she told me.

"I'm trying," I said, putting a small smile on my face for her.

Even though we smiled and we pretended to be alright and pretended to believe the other was alright, I knew we were both drowning, but for different reasons.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_No more S.T.A.R.S. or happiness with Wesker! Poor Becky :( Oh, well, all good things must come to an end. Though I hope y'all will still like this :)

Oh, and in the next chapter there will be a new-ish character that-on a glance-you would not expect Rebecca to befriend. Guesses to who that is?

~_HolleringHawk65_


	16. (The Real) Chapter 16

_**Rebecca**_

When the phone started ringing early in the morning in the middle of August, I wasn't sure if it would be a good or bad thing. But I picked it up anyway.

"Rebecca Chambers," I said.

"Hey, still have my dogtags?"

I froze. "Billy? Why are you calling me? What's wrong? How did you even get this number?"

"Could you sound any happier, doll face?" he asked me.

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, I have 'em, why?" I said to him, figuring he wouldn't answer my questions.

"Didn't want you forgetting me," he told me. I could almost hear the smirk on his face. "So what's going on over there?"

"Just trying to sort some things out. I left S.T.A.R.S. after filing my report," I told him.

"What kind of employment are you looking for?" he asked me.

"Anything that could get me far away from Raccoon City," I told him.

"How about bartending?" he asked me.

"Bartending?" I repeated. "I guess... where are you?"

"Washington," he told me.

"State or D.C.?"

"D.C.," he answered. "My friend-"

"I thought the point of letting you go was so you could start a new life."

He ignored my words. "And I just opened a new bar and I figure you'd catch on quick. What do you say?"

I glanced at the stairs, thinking of Sherry sleeping in her mom's-not to mention my own-old bedroom. "Yeah, I just have to do some things before I leave," I told him.

We talked for a few more minutes, including the exchange of addresses. I'd be there in about four days. I'd start my new job, find a place to stay. Recopperate.

Today I made scrambled eggs and sausage. While cooking, I started forming what I would say to Sherry. I couldn't take her with me and she needed her parents. _If I have to talk to Annette one more time, I'm probably going to shoot someone._

"I had a nightmare," Sherry said softly as she came into the kitchen. Despite her tone, I jumped slightly when I heard her.

"What was it about?" I asked her as I brought over our plates to the table.

"I was being chased by a monster," she said softly, starting to pick at her food.

"No more horror movies for you before bed then," I told her, trying to make light of it. However,whenever I heard the word 'monster,' I instantly thought of Yawn and the Tyrant.

"School starts soon," she said with a sigh. "Then I don't get to do anything that's fun."

"I guess you heard my conversation then?" I asked softly.

"It's alright. I knew I couldn't stay here forever," she told me.

"I'm sorry. You know I'd take you with me if I could. It's just that that's illegal for me to do," I said.

"I wish you could be the one to take care of me," she said. Tears started coming out of the corner of her eyes.

"Me too."

* * *

I went up to the porch with Sherry. She tried the knob but found it was locked. "I knew I should've brought a key," she muttered as she rang the doorbell.

The door opened, revealing a rather scraggly man with disheveled hair. Judging by his blue eyes, this was William Birkin.

"Sherry!" He bent down and hugged his daughter. "I've missed you, sweetheart."

A blush spread on her cheeks. "I missed you, too, Dad," she told him.

After they pulled away, he looked at me. "You must be Rebecca. It's good to finally meet you," he told me, coming over.

"It's nice to meet you, too," I said to him.

"Would you like to come in?" he asked me.

"No thanks, I gotta figure out what I'm taking," I told him.

"You're leaving Raccoon City?" he asked me.

"Yeah. I don't know exactly what I'm going to do with the house yet..."

"Oh, Annette and I will take care of that," he said as he put his hand on Sherry's shoulder.

"Thanks," I said, trying to smile. I was about to turn around to go back to my car when Sherry came over and hugged me.

"You have to call," she told me.

I hugged her back. "I promise you I will."

"I can't lose you, too." Her voice was so much softer as she said that.

""You won't lose me," I told her.

"Thanks for everything, Rebecca."

"Anytime, Sherry," I told her.

I turned around, hoping I could hold my tears back long enough to get into my car.

If it weren't for Wesker, the three of us might actually be sitting at home, being a little family.

Or some other stupid fantasy like that.

But life wasn't that simple. Wasn't that kind of fake perfection.

I sat down in his car. I don't know why, but it was easier to drive that then to be in mine. As aforementioned, his car smelled like him, and that was comforting.

I drove home, tearing up as I did, but not enough to completely hamper my vision. For a moment after I parked, I rested my head against the steering wheel.

"I thought...I thought I loved you," I whispered. "But it's so easy for somebody's opinion to change, isn't it? You were inhumane-_you_ were the monster."

I got out of the car and went inside. I put the keys on the kitchen table, took a shower, and packed my duffle bag.

By the time I was done, it was past seven o'clock. I nuked some leftover Chinese in the microwave, and then sat down and watched Jeopardy. It'd been a developing habit with Wesker and then one I'd made with Sherry.

It felt stupid to do it by myself, but I was trying to seek comfort in the little things. At eight, I thought I should fall asleep, but I decided to do something else, before I lost the chance to do it.

I got up, going down the hallway to a door that had always seemed closed. For a moment, I wondered if he would have actually _locked_ it, but I decided to try it anyway. To my surprise, it opened, even creaking a little bit as it did.

The room didn't really smell like Wesker, if that made sense. Thinking about it, the house never really smelled like Wesker. More like...just home.

Still, I told myself I wanted some sort of closure. I smirked a little bit; wouldn't it figure that I was the one who thought talking to a spirit that probably wasn't even there would give me _comfort?_

"Hey," I said softly as I sat on the bed. He hadn't made it, but it didn't look messy-the sheets folded back over, as if he'd just come out of bed, even though it'd been nearly a month since he'd been home.

"So, I'm leaving tomorrow. Going to D.C. to work at my friend's bar. You'd probably laugh at me and tell me to get a reality check or stop being an idiot. That's kind of one of the reasons I liked you," I stopped my rant to brush away a tear.

"I just wanted to say...Thanks for the memories, Wesker. Even if you were psychotic at the end...I guess I also wanted to let you know that I think you were great how you were. You didn't need some perfect race. I wish that you could've been happy with what you had. With what _we_ had," I said the last part softly.

I couldn't just leave the bedroom. Instead, I laid down and wrapped my arms around the pillow, pressing my face into it and inhaling the faint of smell of either his soap or cologne-even with all of the time we'd lived together, I hadn't figured out if he took his showers in the morning or the night. He always seemed like a morning shower kind of person...

I sighed and closed my eyes. "I loved you," I whispered softly. "But you broke my heart."

* * *

Unfortunately for me, I was not allowed to sleep as long as I liked (though I suppose that ten hours would have been enough to drive on.)

Excessive knocking and ringing at the front door caused me to jerk awake. As it paused, I thought it was a dream. But it started _again_, so I slowly got myself out of the bed.

I shuffled out of the bedroom, down the hall, and to the door. Maybe I should've been more careful, but I was too tired to do anything anyway, and I opened the door to show a man who was probably the same size as Wesker, and even had his hair slicked back. Out of habit, my heart started hammering faster than a woodpecker on a tree.

"Um, hi," I said to him.

Piercing blue eyes met mine and I felt my breath hitch. _Crap, he's hot...doesn't help that he's probably only a __**few**__ years older than me._

"You're Rebecca, right? I'm Krauser, an acquaintance of Billy's. I figured I'd pick you up since I was heading back to D.C. anyway."

"Oh, um, I wasn't exactly expecting this, ah, why don't you come in? Check the fridge for anything you might wanna have. I'm just gonna go get dressed and brush my teeth," I told him.

I went upstairs, my heart racing. _Why wouldn't Billy just call me about this? How does Krauser even know about me? God damn Coen! Why, why, __**why?!**_

I threw on the last pair of clean clothes I'd left out of my bag, then I brushed my teeth like I said I would.

I went back downstairs to find Krauser leaning against the counter. "You don't have anything in your fridge," he told me.

"Not my fridge," I muttered under my breath. "Wanna go through a drive-thru then?" I asked him, slipping my hands into my pockets.

"Anywhere you wanna go. I've been driving since three-thirty," he explained to me.

I glanced at the clock on the oven. "That's just about four hours," I said in disbelief.

He shrugged. "Don't really like good-byes. Leaving in the early hours is easy," he told me.

"Oh, um...that's nice, I guess... Do you want me to drive?" I asked him.

"If you don't mind, sleep does seem kind of good right now. I've up for a while," he said to me.

"Yeah, it's totally fine. I'll even throw in some gas money," I told him, smiling. If Billy _had_ told Krauser to get me, I was grateful. Not much is worse than spending an excessive amount of time alone in a car when you have the chance to spend it with someone else.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked me.

"Yep," I said to him.

I grabbed my bag on my way out of the door, walking right behind Krauser. I kept thinking about how similar he and Wesker looked-going back again and again to the hair, the body build (though I do think that Krauser was more muscular,)...

His car turned out to be a bright blue 1962 Chevy El Camino. I almost felt bad as I ate an Egg McMuffin on the black leather seats. Krauser had his breakfast and then went to sleep.

I turned on the radio to fill the silence, and told myself I was lucky to not being doing this drive by myself.

* * *

**_Author's Note: _**So, there's Krauser. *swoons* I love him, even if he was crazy at the end of RE4... Oh, and isn't the whole Sherry thing sad? I'm not sure how much she's actually going to be in later chapters...And if you haven't yet, could you guys sign the stop SOPA petition? I could write a short sob story about why you should, but I'm sure y'all don't wanna hear that.

Anyways, please review and thank you to everyone who has previously! I love getting the notifications :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	17. Chapter 17

**_Wesker_**

_Wesker, we can help you," Chris told me._

_I laughed. __**Dense as usual.**__ "I need no help. I __**chose**__ this," I said to them._

_"No…" Rebecca's voice was soft. "There's no way..."_

_"How could you do this?" Chris asked. "We're your friends!"_

_I tried to ignore the shock, betrayal, and pain that I saw in their eyes. Sure, maybe Chris and I weren't the best of friends...didn't exactly mean I hated him. And then Rebecca…_

_"I never needed friends. I need followers, and I don't believe I'm going to get that from the two of __**you**__," I told them. I brought my gun up, aiming carefully. Maybe if I shot Rebecca just right, she would become unconscious and remain that way. Maybe she wouldn't have to see what happens next…_

_Right __**there.**__ The strap of the bullet proof vest._

_I pulled the trigger._

* * *

I bolted up in bed, sweating. Every night it was the same thing, over and over, tormenting the fact that I couldn't go back to her-that she wouldn't _want_ me to go back to her.

"Wesker?" the bedroom door creaked open and a hair full of coppery hair peeked in. "Are you alright?"

"Fine, Henry, I'm fine," I told him.

"It's those night terrors again, isn't it? I'm here if you want to talk. Or at least until the next mission," he said, a small smirk on his face.

"You've had good luck with them so far, haven't you?"

He shrugged. "It's all it is, though, isn't it? Breakfast will be ready soon if you want it."

"Thank you. I'll be down in a few minutes," I said to him.

He nodded. "See you then," he told me before turning around and closing the door behind him.

I got up, sighing. I went through the closet and got out another pair of black pants and a grey v-neck t-shirt and put those on before I headed downstairs.

"Combat data was rather insufficient," Henry reminded me, flipping through the report that I'd left out on the kitchen table last night.

"I know."

"What are you going to do?"

I drummed my fingertips on the table. What was I supposed to do? I let my mind wander for a moment, thinking about Rebecca... I should have gone in and self destructed the mansion myself, not bothered with combat data. Stayed with S.T.A.R.S.. The look that I'd seen on _her_ face had been enough to make me want to have died because of the Tyrant.

What was this that I was feeling? Surely not...

"Wesker?"

I looked back up at Henry. "I don't know. What do you think I should do?" I asked him.

"With S.T.A.R.S. gone, there's very few things you could do. Train a team, perhaps? Work on more viruses? I know the higher ups want Birkin's G," he told me.

"Right." I didn't really want to do any of that. I'd been resurrected from _being impaled on __**claws**_ and Henry expected me to go back to what I'd done before? It was nearly laughable.

"Or you could take over Umbrella. I'd personally suggest getting rid of what is left of S.T.A.R.S. first, but that's my opinion."

"I'm tired," I told Henry abruptly, feeling as though the blood in my veins was boiling, "I'll be in my room if you need me."

"Copy that, sir," he told me as he sipped his coffee and I walked back upstairs.

I sat down at the desk, staring at blank pieces of paper. They all seemed so meaningless...None of it _mattered._

I thought about what Henry had said... Getting rid of the five remaining members if S.T.A.R.S. wouldn't be hard at all if I put my mind to it.

_Get rid of? But...what about Rebecca?_

_Though I've already hurt her. Killing her might be considered merciful._

"If you think that, you're more gone than I thought!"

I looked over my shoulder and saw _him_; that damned mirror image of me my mind seemed bent on showing to me. It'd happened a few times in the past month, and I had started to consider it a side effect.

"Just go away," I told the apparition.

"I'm not one of the members of your team! You can't boss _me_ around because I'm _you_," he told me, coming over and poking me square in the chest. "Now, back to the matter at hand. You're not going to hurt Rebecca; she's in a bad enough shape as is. Got it?"

I rolled my eyes. "That's exactly why I should kill her."

"Stop saying that!" The look in my image's green eyes-the same pair I myself had had up until last month-was a mixture between shock and anger. "You're supposed to love her!"

"I don't," I snapped.

"Then why didn't you blow off her head? You never miss your targeted area."

"It was the anticipation."

"Of what? Supposed immortality? Regeneration? What you speak of only exists in _fairy tales_," he snarled.

Out of rashness and the matter that I didn't like being wrong or 'made fun of,' I picked up a pocket knife that was next to the lamp on the desk, flicked it open, and then buried it in my forearm before dragging it down. The pain was excruciating, but I said nothing on it.

I pulled the knife out and watched as my skin knit itself back together.

The image clapped. "Congratulations, Wesker, you turned yourself into a B.O.W.. Amazing. Pure _genius._ I'm sure Alex would be simply _amazed._"

"Fuck off," I growled.

"Aw, I love you too, Albert," he said to me. I was beginning to think that, while he looked like me, the apparition was actually William and my mind was refusing to show me William in account that me actually listening to him was a rather rare event.

"Go away," I told him.

"In all actuality, I'll leave once you admit you've made a mistake and you go to Rebecca and try to...make up, I suppose. And if she doesn't listen, then I suppose you'll simply have to tie her up and bring her here."

I drummed my fingers on the top of the desk. "God damn it, fine," I said as I got up.

* * *

Three hours later and I was sitting in the passenger seat as Henry drove down my old driveway his white 1992 Pontiac Firebird. I'd been resting my elbow on the door, my chin on my hand, letting my mind wander. Most of my thoughts revolved around Rebecca. I wasn't excited, but I felt…

Henry put the car in park. "Whose is that?" he asked me, gesturing to a blacked out SUV in front of my garage.

"William Birkin's," I told him, unbuckling and getting out. Why would he be out here?

I went up to the front door, and I found that the door was unlocked, sending up warning signals in my brain.

"Will? Rebecca?" I called out.

The former came out from the kitchen. "Jesus, you scared me! I thought you weren't supposed to come back here."

"Why are you here?" I asked him.

"Rebecca didn't know what to do with the house and I figured packing this place up would be a way to…" he shrugged.

"Packing? Will, where's Rebecca?"

"She got a different job and left earlier today. Sherry mentioned something about D.C., I think."

"D.C.?" I repeated. There was only so many things an ex-medic for S.T.A.R.S. could do in the nation's capital-including working _for_ _the Government_.

"Yes, District of Columbia, in between Virginia and Maryland. Surely you've heard of it?" he asked me, his voice dry.

"Why is her car here?" I asked him.

"I honestly don't know. But, I do know she's gone. I've been here for an hour and a half," he explained to me.

I didn't say anything for a moment. "She's gone…" I said softly; the words continuing to run through my head.

Henry had just walked in and he stopped short. "Wesker, if there's nothing really here, then we should get a move on. The last thing we need is for someone to see you."

"Nice to know I matter," Will muttered. "I'm sorry, if I'd known, I would've tried to delay her leaving," he told me.

I shook my head. "It's not your fault. I should've come sooner."

Henry cleared his throat. "We really should be going," he reminded me.

"I know," I told him, snapping. "So you've been packing up _my_ house?" I asked William.

"Annie told me that you wouldn't be coming back. So, yeah, pretty much. I've already done upstairs and I was almost done the kitchen," he said to me.

"I'm surprised you came out of your lab."

He blinked before a smirk landed on his lips. "Al, you're my best friend. I owed you this much," he told me.

I sighed. "You're a good friend of mine, too. Thanks for being here, I get to tell you good-bye."

"Damn it, why do you have to leave? End it like this?" he asked me.

"I have to go. Don't forget Sherry," I told him.

He looked down and sighed. "Sherry mentioned something about a man named Billy and a bar named Stiletto. I don't know anything else," he told me. He straightened up. "Bye Wesker, see you in another life."

"See you in another life, Birkin."

I turned around and walked past Henry, who closed the doors behind us. "So, are we heading to D.C. now?" he asked me.

"No...I have something else to do first," I told him.

"So you finally figured out what you wanted to do?" he asked me.

I shrugged. "Maybe; it doesn't help that I hate good-byes."

* * *

Henry was tired. I knew he wasn't getting a lot of sleep, especially with me temporarily living with him.

So I convinced him to go to the hotel while I laid low.

Which meant I went back home.

Will's car was gone and I was able to get inside without disturbances. Why was I doing this?

I went into the garage and grabbed a can of gas before going back in to look around first, remembering memories. The upstairs bedroom reminded me of Annette, while the bathroom was filled of memories of that night with Rebecca. The kitchen was a mixture between Sherry and Rebecca, as with the living room. Reaching my study, I smiled at the thought of all of the papers I'd done in that room, from reports for Umbrella to S.T.A.R.S.. I went into my bedroom, just for kicks, and was slightly unnerved at the smell of Rebecca. It was faint, but simultaneously recent. She couldn't have been in here long...

I stopped in front of the bed. She'd been in it, because the sheets were a lot more rumpled then when I'd left them.

"If you'd only waited one more day..." I said softly. I uncapped the gas and started pouring, walking through to the hallway, then the kitchen, the adjacent dining room, the living room, and to the front door. I had a little bit of gas left, so I dumped it in the study for good measure.

I put the can down before I went into the kitchen for a packet of matches. I walked through the front door before turning around, striking a match, and dropped it.

I quickly turned around and got into the car as quickly as I could, driving away just as fast.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** _I hope y'all liked this piece of Wesker (though sorry if that last piece seems out of place. I kinda threw it in there). I know that Haveyouseenmyghost wanted more Wesker starting back in Chapter 15, so I hope this is acceptable! Love you all and please review! ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	18. Chapter 18

**_Rebecca_**

"You should stop driving. You've been at it for eight hours," Krauser told me.

"Not straight," I muttered, recalling the stop we'd made at a Champ's that had taken an hour and a half. "And I'll keep driving for a little while longer, unless you're worried about your Camino."

"By all means, keep driving," he said to me.

I glanced at him, trying to figure out some comment, but the time had already come and gone.

"So why is Billy concerned about you?" Krauser asked me a few minutes later.

"What?"

"Billy. Why did he offer you a job at his and Tanya's bar?" he asked me.

"Tanya? You know what, nevermind. I don't know why he offered me the job. Maybe because I'm a friend?"

"I've never heard about you before now," he told me.

"Billy and I met last month," I explained.

"When he was supposed to be executed," Krauser pointed out.

I flinched. _It should've been everyone's execution,_ I thought to myself. "Look, I don't really want to talk about this," I told him.

"Alright, I understand. Everyone has their touchy subjects."

"Gonna give me any ideas on what yours is?" I asked, mostly teasing.

"No. Then it wouldn't be my touchy subject," he explained.

I smiled. "Understood."

"Great."

* * *

It was eight thirty-four hours later-when I stopped driving. Or, really, it was Krauser insisting I stop because he had nothing to do. We both got out at a 50's style diner where we split the bill when we were done. By this point I was tired and it reminded me all too much about the time I'd gone to the diner in Raccoon City with Wesker and Sherry.

I yawned and nearly leaned against Krauser, but I stopped myself just in time. I looked up at him as we walked out to the parking lot.

"Do you want to stay at the motel?" he asked me.

I looked down the road and to the motel. It was a...quaint...looking place, there'd obviously been better, but there was also a lot more that were a lot worse.

"I guess."

* * *

A half hour later found me just getting out of the shower, wearing my robe. I sat on one of the twin beds, not ready to go to bed just yet, the shower having woken me up a bit.

Krauser went into the bathroom, the door locking with a click behind him. When I heard the shower starting again, I picked up the phone and dialed the Birkins'.

"Hello, who's calling please?" I heard Sherry say.

"Hey, Sherry-Berry," I said into the phone.

"Rebecca! You called! There's a lot I have to tell you, but first, how are you? Are you at D.C. yet?" she asked me.

"Not yet, we're in Indiana," I told her.

"We?"

"One of Billy's friends picked me up on his way back from Colorado," I answered.

"Oh. That's nice. Dad was wondering why your car was still at Wesker's house, and I got kinda worried when he said that. I guess it doesn't matter now though…"

"I'm sorry Sherry, I didn't mean to worry you," I said to her as I drew my knee to my chin. "What did you want to tell me?"

"Wesker's house got burned down," she told me.

"Wh-what? Who would do that!?"

The bathroom door opened. "Are you alright?" Krauser asked me.

I looked over my shoulder, my heart skipping a beat as I saw him in only a towel around his waist. "Yes," I said abruptly, sticking my tongue out. "Now go back to whatever you're doing. I'm on the phone."

He rolled his eyes yet there was a smile on his face. He turned around and closed the door again.

"Are you still there?" I asked Sherry.

"Yep."

"So what happened? Did the police find anyone?"

"No. Dad was the last known person to be at the house," she told me.

"Why was he there?"

"Packing stuff up, but he didn't get to a lot of it. Most of it burned with the house. I'm sorry about your furniture," she explained.

I sighed. "If I'd wanted it I would've taken it."

"I know, but still…"

We talked for a few minutes longer, and then I had to hang up because I kept yawning. As we said good-bye, I felt the twinge of sadness in my stomach.

I hung up the phone and then tried to go to sleep. Even though I was tired, my mind was wandering everywhere, but kept returning to the house. Remembering coming to the conclusion that Wesker and Annette had been in a relationship right after he'd showed me the guest bedroom. Blushing as I thought about how his fingertips had felt against my skin that night in the bathroom. Only then, as I laid in motel bed, did it strike me as funny that he had no leftovers but boxes of mac & cheese in his pantry. Which led to thinking about falling asleep next to-_on-_-him on the couch. And then, of course, seeing him shirtless. I smiled as my train of thoughts ended to seeing him at his desk in the study.

I didn't realize I'd been crying until I yawned, bringing my hand up to my mouth. My thumb brushed against a wet spot, and I moved it up only to feel more.

As I shut my eyes, the door to the bathroom opened and shut-but didn't click close-and I heard Krauser lay down on the other bed. I looked over my shoulder to see him bare chested and in a pair of flannel pajama pants, his hands underneath his head as he looked up at the ceiling.

As I was looking over that way, I noticed that the bathroom light was still on. I said nothing, not wanting him to feel like he'd have to explain anything. I moved my head back and shut my eyes again.

Maybe, one of these days, Krauser would open up about his touchy subject to me.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **_Yeah, I know. No Wesker. *sighs.* Next chapter is probably gonna be more Rebecca. I just...I have this plan, and it sorta involves the two of them (Wesker & Rebecca) not seeing each other until after the events of Code Veronica (which, if I'm not mistaken, them seeing each other would occur in mid-January.) Please don't hate me, but even if you do, please leave a review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	19. Chapter 19

**_Rebecca_**

The next two days were a lot easier. It was a silent agreement that since we were both rather equally rested, we'd split the time driving a bit more evenly. Krauser drove when there were less cars while I drove during the rush hours and other times of heavy traffic-which was nearly the whole entire afternoon on the second day.

It did not help that it was a Monday.

"Turn up here," Krauser told me.

I sighed. "Left or right?"

"Left."

I did as directed and drove a little bit further down the street before parking in front of the tavern Billy owned. Krauser and I both got out of the Camino and went inside. Currently, there were only a few people in there, two of them being Billy and a red haired woman.

Billy was just like I remembered him, only dressed differently. Brownish-black hair that was cut at the nape of his neck, tan skin, and warm brown eyes, and let's not forget that he was over a half foot taller than me in his boots.

He stood with his thumbs in the belt loops of his blue jeans and he was leaning against the bar as he talked to the red haired woman.

They glanced over at us and Billy burst into a smile. "Rebecca! Krauser!" he said as he walked over to us. He abruptly hugged me. "God, it's good to see you. How have you been?"

I almost said "What do you mean how have I've been?" but then I remembered he hadn't been present when Wesker revealed the truth. So instead I just hugged him again, pressing my face into his chest.

"That bad, doll face?" he asked me.

"Yeah, that bad," I muttered as I pulled away.

"How about you, Jack? Training treating you alright?" Billy asked as he slipped his thumbs back into his belt loops.

"It was easy," the blond told him.

"Glad to know you're still cocky," Billy told him. "Are you guys hungry? We just opened for lunch."

"Starving," I told him.

* * *

So that was my afternoon; eating and talking.

It turns out that the red haired woman was Tanya, the co-owner of Stiletto, not to mention Billy's girlfriend. She was a mix of Irish and Italian, very nice, and easy to talk to.

In fact, I'd never heard Krauser-er, Jack?-talk consistently for so long.

Towards the end of our conversation, something rather important was brought up.

"So where are you staying?" Tanya asked me.

I glanced down at my root beer. "Um, I don't really know…"

"You can stay with us," Billy instantly offered. "It's because of me that you're here."

Tanya looked at him, mouth slightly opened. I could tell without her saying anything that, while she seemed to like me, she didn't want another girl-especially one who seemed so 'mysterious' when it came to how Billy and I met-at _their_ apartment.

"What if she stays at my apartment?" Krauser offered. Billy looked at him, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes, that's a great idea!" Tanya said, pouncing on the idea as if it was a mouse and she was a cat.

I instantly thought of the last stunningly handsome blond that offered-or was it told?-me to stay at his chosen place of living.

Clearly, it hadn't really worked out.

"I don't think I can," I said softly. "I don't want to intrude."

"Why not? I'm rarely home anyway."

I bit my lower lip, thinking. But before I could say anything, Billy got up. "Becky, can I talk to you?"

I stood up. "Yep, lead the way," I told him.

We left the bar and walked down the street a little bit before he talked again.

"I know you don't know him, but I know Krauser and he's someone who's not exactly open to people. It would mean a lot to me if you moved in with him," Billy explained to me.

I looked at him, an eyebrow raised. "Seriously? I left Raccoon-"

"Don't even try to play that card. Everything was going downhill there and you know it."

I rolled my eyes. "Why does he want me to move in with him?" I asked him.

"You must've made an impression on him."

"Fine..."

* * *

Later on that day, at about five o'clock, Krauser and I walked into his flat. It overlooked the Potomac and wasn't too far away from the cherry blossom trees either.

There were absolutely no pictures in here, not even one of a dog. Just bare beige walls and wood flooring. A TV, a lamp, a white carpet, and a blue suede three piece sectional with a coffee table in front of it made up the living room. An island with barstools, counters, a fridge, microwave, stove top, and cabinets made up a decently sized kitchen area. Two closed doors presumably lead to a bedroom and a bathroom.

"Nice place," I said to him. I stood next to the kitchen island, still clutching my duffel bag.

"Thanks, it's a present from the government," he explained to me as he walked over to one of the doors. "This is where you'll sleep," he told me.

I came over and gasped. "No way! Krauser, this is the master bedroom!"

"How many times do I have to tell you that I'll hardly be here? It won't kill me to sleep on the couch," he told me.

"Fine," I grumbled and walked into the bedroom. It was brighter, with only gauzy white curtains over the windows. A light brown wooden four post bed with white sheets and a maroon quilt/comforter was against the window, and a matching dresser was placed on the adjacent wall. A bookshelf was opposite that, an oversized chair with a blanket over the back as well as another lamp made a quaint reading corner.

"The closet can be yours," Krauser told me. He'd crept up behind me and his voice had caused me to jump. I looked at him as a breath escaped my mouth.

"Don't _ever_ do that again," I told him

"Sorry, didn't mean to scare you, Half-pint," he told me, a smirk on his face.

"Screw you," I said to him.

"Is that an offer?" he asked me, leaning in.

I rolled my eyes, resisting the urge to slap him. "Just take your shower," I said to him, suddenly avoiding his bright blue eyes.

"Are you alright?" he asked me.

"Peachy."

"Touchy subject?"

"Just go take your shower," I said before I set my bag down. "I'm going to unpack."

For a moment he seemed hesitant before he got another set of clothes from the dresser. I waited until he was in the master bathroom before I walked over to the closet. When I opened it, there was nothing in it. Half of it was wooden shelves that were half full by the time I was done. I had no hang up clothes, so the rack remained empty.

When I was done, I sat on the bed. I had nothing to do until Krauser came out unless I looked at the books, but I didn't really feel like it right then; I was too tired. I hesitantly laid down, half afraid the bed would swallow me up. I shut my eyes and told myself it would be fine.

* * *

I woke up with the blanket from the reading chair on top of me. The wool made me feel cozy and I was about to fall asleep again when I heard a thump from the living room.

I got up, rather concerned. I quietly opened the door and saw that the TV was on, but muted. Krauser was sitting on the couch, not looking at me-actually, he was asleep-so I went closer. I nearly instantly saw what had caused the noise; a beer bottle had slipped from his hand, hitting the wood floor.

I stood there for a moment, not sure what I should do-if anything. I'd been raised with the idea that if a man was drinking, you left him alone.

But instead of just leaving, I went back into the bedroom and got the blanket. I returned to the living room and quickly put it over him.

After that, I made myself go back to sleep, sleeping snugly underneath the comforter.

* * *

In the morning, I woke up to the sound of pots and pans being moved around in the kitchen. I glanced at the clock on top of the dresser and saw that it was six thirty, which meant I had three and a half hours to kill before I had to be at the bar.

I slowly got up, feeling not as rested as I could be. Walking through the door, I saw the source of the noise; Krauser was making breakfast at the stove.

"I'm leaving for a mission later," he told me. I stood right outside the bedroom door, absorbing the words.

"I guess you guys really weren't joking when you said you were never here," I said softly, coming closer.

"It's not really joking material," he explained as he put the breakfast-eggs with diced potatoes, along with a side of bacon-onto plates. "There's juice in the fridge."

I went over to it and opened it to see apple, orange, grape, and cranberry. Other inhabitants of the fridge included water, eggs, various fruits, a few vegetables, and a packet of chicken.

"What kind do you want?" I asked him.

"Cranberry," he answered as I heard glasses clinking together.

I grabbed the cranberry and apple juice bottles and brought the over to the island, where he was just siting down.

"Before I left; I wanted to lay down some rules," he began, not looking at me.

"Lay 'em down," I told him as I poured both juices into separate glasses.

"No alcohol unless I'm here," that one surprised me, "If someone comes over, don't do anything on the couch; it's _my_ couch," I smirked slightly, "and no illegal drugs."

"Got it," I told him. "Though it does sound like you're pushing me to go to the bedroom right away..."

He chuckled before speaking again. "You know what I meant."

"I did." _Maybe this will work after all._

Just as Billy had predicted, teaching me how to make the drinks wasn't hard. It was definitely a lot easier then attempting to learn how to shoot. Or getting chased by the undead.

"So how'd it go last night?" Tanya asked me as she came in from the back. Billy had just gone into the kitchen to talk to the chef, meaning the two of us were alone.

"Good," I said to her as I cleaned the bar; I'd spilled a bit of cherry juice early.

"Anything happen?"

I bit my lower lip. Did this woman honestly think I slept with Krauser?! I'm not a slut-I'm not _easy_.

"No," I said to her.

"That's too bad."

"For who?" I shot back. She looked like she'd been slapped.

"If you're implying that you think I'm jealous of the experience you shared with Billy, you're dead wrong. Big woopty doo that you two went through that together. Just remember who was here for him when he got back," she told me.

"If you're implying that I like Billy romantically, _you're_ the one who's dead wrong," I told her.

"Because you're too guilty about your father to have any room to love?" She asked me. Bitter resentment was plain in her voice and I backed up as I realized what she'd said.

"How do you..." No, I didn't want to know. Talking about _him_ was the last thing I freaking needed right now. I didn't want this to escalate, so I did something that seemed to becoming habit, if only to me. I put the cleaning towel down, grabbed my bag, and walked out.

I'd just have to explain it all to Billy later.

* * *

**_Author's Note:_** So, there we have it. Krauser already left again, who knows when he'll get back, and Tanya is a bitch. I apologize if Billy seems OOC; I've unfortunately have never played RE0 and I can only get so much from a wiki. I hoped you liked this chapter an please review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	20. Chapter 20

**_Rebecca_**

I sat on the bed, curled up and holding the phone to my ear. My mind kept thinking to Tanya-how could she know anything?-which lead to thinking about my father which lead to my heart bounding to the point I heard blood rushing around and as much as I tried calming down, it wasn't working.

So, I found myself at my wit's end and willing to do anything to relax, so I dialed Sherry's number.

"Hello?" I heard her say.

"Hi Sherry, it's-"

"Becky!"

I smiled. My heart began to calm down as we talked more and more. She was starting school next Monday; then she wouldn't be alone all of the time anymore. I told her how I'd moved into Krauser's apartment, which she seemed a little put off about, and how I was officially starting work tomorrow.

But, like nearly every time before, we avoided talking about the object that seemed to be looming in the corner; Wesker.

After we hung up-the whole conversation took around forty-five minutes-I went into the kitchen and looked around the cabinets for something to eat. In the end, I settled on a microwavable meal.

I sat at the island and quickly finished. Finding myself bored, I flipped on the TV and watched soap operas, talk shows, and the news.

At seven thirty, Jeopardy was supposed to turn on, but I shut the TV off and took my shower. Some things were never meant to stay the same.

* * *

I had ended up reading half of the night away. I woke up at nine thirty, and, having to be at the bar by ten, I rushed around, desperate to get ready and be there on time. I knew I probably wouldn't be, but I was trying.

I grabbed the keys-Krauser had generously left his El Camino here-and quickly rushed to the parked vehicle. Nine-fifty-four. Maybe, just maybe, I'd get there on time.

Driving as fast as I could without freaking myself out. I quickly parked the car in the staff lot behind back and walked through the door right at ten oh two.

"Doll face, you alright?" Billy asked as he saw me.

"Yeah, just slept in late. How can I help?"

* * *

Later on in the day, happy hour actually, I was waiting behind the bar when I saw Tanya talking-or rather, being talked _to_-by this guy. Now, normally I wouldn't take notice, but this guy was taller than Billy. He had broad shoulders, but wasn't overly built. He was talking to Tanya, who just kept nodding her head. After a few minutes, he got up, but didn't leave.

No, he came over to the bar. He had short, coppery, hair and light brown eyes that almost looked like hazel.

"A bottle of Jack Daniels," he said to me. His voice was smooth, not really deep or high, simply somewhere in the middle.

I turned around and grabbed the bottle. I set it down next to him, feeling kind of nervous. Every time I glanced over at him over the course of the next hour, he was looking at me.

"Are you here for a reason?" I asked him, leaning on the bar slightly.

"Tanya seems like a hard person to work with," he told me.

"So far," I said.

"I'm sure she'll get better," he said to me before he put a fifty on the bar top. "Have a nice night."

"You too," I said to the turned around figure before going about with the other occupants of the bar.

Closing time came around at one in the morning; Billy and I quickly closed up and then we went to the parking lot together.

"Did you have a good day?" Billy asked me.

"It was fine," I told him. I wondered if I should tell him about that one guy-the one with those bright blue eyes. Then I thought about it just a little bit more and I knew that I shouldn't tell him-he had enough on his plate with the restaurant and the weird feeling I had about the stranger was just that; a weird feeling.

"I'll see you tomorrow at eleven, alright?" Billy said, ruffling my hair up as if I was a little kid. I guess to him I was, with the eight year age difference.

"Yeah, if that's alright with you. See ya tomorrow," I told him.

"See ya, doll face."

I smiled as I got into the Camino. I didn't turn on the radio in the short drive, which was probably a bad decision because it left me too much time to think.

I wondered if Wesker had ever thought I was a child. Probably. Oh, and he also probably thought I was worthless because I wouldn't be a 'follower.'

I slammed the door shut as I was getting out. Going into the building, I was more than likely a lot louder than I meant to be, but screw it. I was still pissed over the past; something I couldn't ever hope to change.

I took a shower, trying to tell myself that a warm shower would help me relax, but it wasn't helping in the slightest.

I got dressed in my pajamas and then tried to sleep, but to no avail. I was up until at least four, staring at the ceiling. Wesker's last words to me kept circling over and over in my head. _I don't need help. I chose this. I need followers, and I don't believe I'm going to get that from the two of you._

Because we knew the old him, or at least Chris did, and that was a dangerous thing for a would be idol. They don't want the public to see the past; just what they were _now_.

I should get over this. Stop caring. But I lived in his house for a month after the Arklay incident with his goddaughter who'd come for comfort from both of us. I drove his car because he'd left the keys at my desk. I'd slept on his bed that _one_ time because I missed him.

And I still did.

* * *

Nine forty-five and my alarm went off. I slowly got up, going over to the bathroom to splash cold water on my face before going back to the bedroom and getting clothes for today-khaki shorts and a green v-neck. Today I actually got to have breakfast and then I left for work.

As I walked into Stiletto, Tanya came over to me. I instantly went stiff, starting to think the worst. More reminding me of my father? Or did she know about Wesker and the Ecliptic Express and Arklay incident too?

"I'm sorry, Rebecca," she told me. "Let's start fresh, alright?"

_Well that was something I wasn't expecting._ "Okay, that works with me." I justified this by telling myself this woman who could possibly know more than me then I could imagine was probably doing this for Billy.

She held her hand out and I quickly took it. "To work now?" I asked her after she'd let go.

"To work," she said with a smile.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_So, a not so long chapter, but hey, it's over five hundred words, so I'm satisfied :) So, can anyone figure out who that guy is? And did he possibly do something to influence Tanya? Maybe more Wesker in the next chapter?

I spent just under an hour on Youtube watching the RE0 cutscenes and can I tell you I feel really bad for not shipping Billy and Rebecca? But I still love her with Wesker. Watching him in some of the cutscenes, I was trying to think about how if I decided to maybe go back and fill in some time gaps, what he'd be thinking as he talked to Birkin. I mean, that whole thing with Marcus was just freaking creepy. Like, that guy was _dead_ and just... *shudders* Another thing is I never imagined her (Rebecca) to sound like that, but now...

Anyways, thank you to everyone who has reviewed/followed/favorited, etc. Not to mention the over 2,500 views? If I'm not mistaken, this is my highest circulating story! It means so much to me, but I'd loved if you put some voices to that number, I'd be even happier!

Love you all!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	21. Chapter 21

_**Wesker**_

"What do you mean you saw Rebecca?" I asked Henry.

Of course, it would explain the absence of both him and the private jet for the past two and a half days, but the fact that _he_ saw her...

My hands slowly relaxed as I realized what was going on. I was jealous of Henry because he got to see Rebecca because, for some unexplainable reason, I cared about her.

"Since you're such a pig head, I figured I'd go make sure she was settling down alright," he explained to me.

"Pig head? Really? Is there no other phrase you couldn't have used, Korozov?" I asked him.

"None in this language, Wesker," he told me. His hazel eyes stared at the coffe cup in front of him.

"How is she?" I asked. I needed to know. I knew the chance of salvaging our relationship was slim, at best, but I still cared.

"The other co-owner of the bar was giving her a hard time-turns out her brother went to prison with Mr. Chambers and kept in contact with him afterwards. When he hadn't heard from him, he called the RCPD," Henry told me.

"I trust you resolved the issue?"

Henry chuckled. "Not exactly. Tanya's younger sister has cancer."

Whenever I heard the word 'younger' I instantly thought of Sherry. "That's unfortunate," I said.

"It is. I'm dishing out a quarter of my salary until she gets better in exchange for Tanya and her brother's silence."

"Her brother matters why again?"

"Is a side effect of this regenerative virus less concentration and mental use? Let me spell it out for you: the two of them could easily send Rebecca into a very, very dark place. And who's gonna be there for her? Surely not you-_you're_ dead! This Bily guy is clearly busy with the restaurant and then her roommate-"

"Roommate? What roommate?" I asked him.

"Jack Krauser. He works for the USSOCOM and is currently away on a mission. He's also the _man_ who picked her up from your house," he explained, a taunting smirk on his face.

"Who told you all of this?"

"Tanya sung like a canary," he said.

"I still don't get it; why would you go there in the first place? Surely you couldn't have known about Tanya beforehand."

He drummed his fingers on the table. "It doesn't matter."

"Yes, it does. It concerns Rebecca and-"

"And what? Are you just going to fuck her up like you did with my cousin?!" he yelled. "Pretend that you're so sweet and you care so much until you wrench her heart out and crush it so badly she can't see everyone around her is worried?!"

I flinched. "Henry-"

"Just stop. Point blank is this: I'm looking out for her because she reminds me of my cousin, and I bet it's the same for you."

"You bet wrong," I told him, my voice low. "Rebecca is her own person."

"I'm not saying she's not. I'm saying that certain characteristics she possesses are similar to my cousin's." Henry stood up. "_I_ have to report into work, I'll see you later."

I sighed, looking down at the table. _Of course Henry would harbor feelings over something that happened, what, six years ago now? He rarely knows when to quit…_

I looked up and saw that the clock said seven thirty. I made no move to get up and turn the TV on. It didn't matter anymore.

* * *

The days dragged on, seemingly endless. Work took Henry away longer and longer, to the point where one day he just didn't show up-maybe he'd never come home from the night before.

The date was September 21.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Haha, I guess Wesker isn't going to work! Shame on him ;)

Hi everyone! I know this is a short chapter, but I thought it would work (wow those words sound familiar! *rolls eyes*) On another note, do you guys know what day this is for me? The first day of school! Gosh, it seems like summer just started *tears up* This also means I might not have as much time to write... But I'll still try to keep up the every other day posting!

Oh, and in the next chapter, we see Sherry and Leon! Possibly even Claire and/or Ada, not really sure yet. But I'm _super_ excited because I've been thinking about this chapter for about a week and I think y'all love it! :)

Please spare some time for a review?

Alright, now I'm going (this Author's Note feels longer than the actual chapter, deary me...) Have a great day everyone!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	22. Chapter 22

_**I don't own 7 Eleven, of which Slurpee is a trademark of.**_

* * *

_**Leon**_

_September 29_

_Alright, so let's go over what happened one more time._

1) Stayed up too late last night-this morning?-woke up late.

2) Got attacked by zombies.

3) Nearly got pulverized by Claire's bike.

4) Ran into the RPD building.

5) Oh, and zombies. Everywhere.

Fuck my life.

I looked around again, searching for ammo. By now I was basically in the back of the building, an area filled with desks and an office. Desperate, I tried the door and found it unlocked.

Meticulously clean, it would put my mother's house to shame. Nothing visible, but I decided to try the drawers in the desk anyway. As I opened the second drawer on the left, I saw something that caught my eyes.

It was a picture of a girl in a green basketball uniform and gauze over her stomach, her elbows on the ball and a smile on her face. She was probably younger than me, and her eyes were bright. I flipped it over, and in neat handwriting it said _July 17, 1998. She was convinced to joining the R.P.D. basketball team. Must avoid her on Saturday mornings._

I went back out to Claire. "Who is this?" I asked her.

She looked down at the picture. "That must be Rebecca Chambers. She'd just joined S.T.A.R.S. back in July."

I looked down at the picture again. Her face and smile were bright and her eyes seemed...hopeful. "Whose office was that?" I asked Claire as we took up searching again.

She glanced over her shoulder to said office. "Wesker's, I guess."

I pocketed the picture. "Alrighty then."

* * *

_October 2_

Four days and I felt like my world had been thrown off its axis. Somewhere in between all of it, I had decided that I would never again think of zombie horrors as stupid.

Ever again.

"Look Leon, there's a gas station! Do you have any change? I could call Rebecca! She's gotta be worried sick…" The young blonde that was Sherry Birkin said to me.

I felt my pockets and as I went into one of my pockets, searching deep down. My hand brushed against a piece of paper as I found a quarter. Confused, I brought both out.

Sherry was watching me like a bird that needed feeding. She gasped as she saw the picture. "Where did you get that?" she asked me, coming over and taking it from me.

"Wesker's office," I told her.

She blinked once as she looked at it. "This feels like it would've been a lifetime ago." She flipped it over before handing it back to me. "C'mon, we better get going."

At the payphone outside of the 7 Eleven, Sherry quickly put the quarter in and dialed a number she probably knew by heart. She rocked back and forth on her heels as it rang.

"Hi, this is Sherry Birkin," she said after a moment. "Oh, okay, thank you." She looked at me, biting her lip. My eyes went to the metal surrounding the area-this phone gave twelve minutes of talking time with every quarter. I started feeling my pockets for another one.

"Rebecca! Yes, I'm fine. Well… We're not in Raccoon City. I'm with Leon. He was supposed to be a police officer and he's super nice. We're by a 7 Eleven. You know where it is? I don't think we can. But, here, talk to Leon," she said to her before thrusting the phone to me.

"Hi, you must be Rebecca."

"OhmygodIcan'ttellyouhowfreakedoutIwasI'msofucking gladthatSherry'salright, how could I ever repay you?" she said in one breath.

"Maybe come pick us up? We're about forty miles from Raccoon City," I told her.

"I'll see what I can do. Please just stay put," she said to me.

I looked around. No zombies or monsters, so I was pretty sure this a pretty good waiting place. "Definitely. Here, I'll put Sherry back on."

The two talked until the line went dead. When it was over, Sherry looked at the phone, tears rolling down her cheeks. She looked at me after she hung it up before coming over and hugging me.

I groaned slightly as I felt the numb pain in my shoulder return. I hugged Sherry back before walking around to the front of the 7 Eleven. Lights shut off and locked. I guess I could assume the owner had either fled or was somehow a victim. Needing a real bathroom, food, and something to drink desperately, I pulled my gun out of its holster and slammed it down on the glass, causing it to crack. I hit it again, effectively shattering it. I reached through the hole and unlocked it, then opened the door.

Sherry quickly walked in and I closed the door behind us in mock comfort.

"Yes! The slurpee machine is still plugged in!" Sherry ran over and grabbed a cup before filling it with the icy treat.

I looked around, trying to figure something out for the worst case scenario. Six packs of beer were present, and so was an array of lighters. I could easily pour some of the alcohol and hope it would light up like a molotov cocktail.

After Sherry finished her first Slurpee, the two of us cleaned up in the bathrooms. I could tell that she was finally happy again after the whole G-Virus incident, since she was practically jumping around.

After I'd dried off with paper towels, I pulled out the picture again. Looking at the back one more time, I decided I'd ask Sherry about this Wesker guy.

I found Sherry sitting on top of the counter, scratching off tickets. When I stopped in front of her, she looked up at me, mouth slightly open already. "There's got to be a winner somewhere in here. Wouldn't that be so cool if we won a million dollars or something?" she asked me.

I smiled. "Yeah, it would be."

With that said, I held off a little bit on asking her about Wesker. As we scraped together a dinner of chips and twizzlers, I figured if I didn't ask her now, I probably never would.

"So did you know Wesker?" I asked her.

She looked up at me like a prairie dog popping out of its hole. Eyes wide, she looked at me in silence for a few minutes. "He was my godfather."

Of course, I noticed the 'was.' I didn't say anything and waited for her to add more.

"Rebecca lived with him before he died, and then I stayed with her for a month; until she left. She drove his car and slept on his couch and…" tears traveled down her cheeks. "And she never talked about him. I guess I didn't ask why either. I was afraid of the truth. Always afraid it'll be something I don't want to hear."

"Sherry…"

She wiped her eyes. "Leon, please don't lie to me. Don't tell me it's going to be alright, that this will be something I'll forget. All I want to happen is for Rebecca to pick me up so I can curl against her and maybe have a chance of sleeping without nightmares."

I looked down at myself. Ripped and bloody clothes, but I was still a warm body. "C'mere," I said, my voice light as I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her to me. She giggled and looked up at me, though her blue eyes the color of the sky were shining with wetness. I brought my thumb up and wiped the tears away. "We have each other," I told her before I laid down on the cold tile floor.

She cuddled against me. "Thank you, Leon," she whispered.

The two of us laid there, trying to sleep but at the same time being too afraid to. Eventually sleep must've overcome both of us, because we woke up to the sound of a helicopter...

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_...and a moment later, this really big blonde guy dressed all in black came in and took Sherry away from me, and I was definitely powerless to even attempt to stop him. A few hours later, the military came and asked me if I was Leon. Of course, I said yes, and that's when I found out the man was a living Albert Wesker. A couple of weeks later, I heard through the grapevine about this Rebecca Chambers going missing. Coincidence? I think not!

No, joking! Wouldn't it be funny if that's how I ended it though? Laughing so hard at the thought right now...

Nah, then it wouldn't be 'A look at Wesker and Rebecca's relationship through the years,' or whatever the description is. And I have a lot of plans for the timeline of: right after RE 2 (as seen above, but with elaboration on Rebecca-talk about spinning out of control...), right after Code Veronica (Wesky and Becky! :), after Operation Javier, RE 4, RE 5, and of course, RE 6. So we've got some time. Think at least another 15 chapters, but probably more than that.

Also, in the next chapter, just a heads up that it's a lot darker than the rest of the story (so far, at least), and it involves self harm and suicidal thoughts. *bites lip in nervousness*

Hope y'all are still enjoying! Thank you for all of the reviews, but hopefully there'll be more?...

Love all of you guys that read this! ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	23. Chapter 23

**_Rebecca_**

I felt like I was suffocating as the news played. The breaking news headline read: _Raccoon City bombed by the U.S. government._

No one needed to spell it out to me that they were covering up something that had probably started at Umbrella; another outbreak.

Before anyone could ask, I was rushing out of the bar and puking in the parking lot. _Sherry's gone. Sherry's gone. Sherry's gone. She's dead, just like Richard, and Enrico, and Forest, and Edward, and everyone else! Dead just like Wesker…_

I couldn't even drive home because, being one of the nice days, I'd walked the seven blocks to Stiletto. I stumbled along darkened streets, feeling drunker than someone who'd actually drank at the bar. Eventually, I got to the apartment building, continuing to stumble.

_Huh, zombie like, isn't it?_ I thought darkly as I got into the elevator. I made my way to the apartment, looking around as I walked in.

_There's not even anyone here to see me. I guess that's the point though, isn't it? Alone._

I went straight into the bedroom, stripping my clothes off as I went until I was bare. I reached under the mattress for the handgun I'd found there last week. It felt different than other guns I'd handled, but anyone could pull a trigger, so it didn't matter that much.

I went into the bathroom, reaching over the tub for my razor. I stared at it for a moment, before I decided it wouldn't work, or at least how I wanted it to. I went back into the bedroom, going over to the drawers to search for a knife of Krauser's-because _surely_ there had to be some in there.

I finally found one and went back into the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror; the last scars my father gave me were still visible, begging to be opened-even deeper than before, too.

But first I slowly drew the knife up my left arm; the crimson color seemed perfect against my tan skin. Slowly, the process was repeated on my right arm.

I was just about to start on the scars on the upper part of my stomach, this whole time my thoughts going even darker-_why hadn't I taken Sherry? Who gives a fuck about anything 'illegal'-I've been through __**Hell**__ and back. And now Sherry died there. In Hell. Surrounded by monsters. Probably alone. It's just not fair; what did she ever do?_-when the door opened.

I looked over my shoulder as my blood dripped onto the white floor.

"Rebecca!?" It was Krauser; his voice was coming from the main room.

He'd been home two weeks before, but only for two days, of which he spent most of it sleeping. I'd guess this way I'd get to say goodbye.

He stopped in front of the door panting. His eyes were looking me up and down, lingering on every spot. He came in and grabbed the knife from me, and I was too startled to stop him. He saw the gun but didn't touch it as he dropped the knife into the sink.

He opened the mirror cabinet and took out gauze. He turned around and slowly took my left arm into his hand. His calloused fingertips touched sensitive skin and I tried to shy away.

"Don't even try," he said, his voice low. "You inflicted the initial pain, you live with pain that comes with me trying to clean it up."

I stared at him, keeping silent as he wrapped the white material around my arms.

"She's dead," I whispered softly as he was done.

"Sherry?"

I nodded slowly.

He left me in there as he went back into the bedroom. He came back a moment later with a tank top and shorts. "Please just put clothes on," he said to me.

I slowly took them from him. After I got dressed and he was still standing there, "Why are you here?" I asked softly.

"It was on the news in the airport. And this is still technically my apartment," he explained to me. While we were in the same space, his blue eyes never left me, as if he thought I was still considering taking the knife and stabbing myself, or shooting myself in the head.

At least he had brains.

"It's-"

"Don't," I cut him off. "Don't tell me it's going to be alright, because that's a lie. She was the last good thing in Raccoon City," I told him.

"Rebecca…"

"Don't."

"Please, just let me talk," he said to me.

I sighed. "Fine," I mumbled.

"It's gonna get worse. The pain is going to leave this searing hole in your heart and you're gonna feel like one day, you never want to get up again. But you'll persevere because something somewhat worthwhile will come along and you know you'll spend most of your time with that. You'll probably cry yourself to sleep some nights, remembering all of these good times, but in the end, you know that it won't be worth killing yourself over because you know they would've wanted you to continue on."

I looked at him, standing there for a few minutes. I guess I was waiting for him to tack on something light hearted, but he didn't. I swallowed hard, still looking at him.

And that's when I broke down. Is this what they call acceptance? I collapsed at his feet, crying my eyes out. I don't know why this hurt so much more than when my mother passed.

Strong arms wrapped around me and picked me up. I sobbed into Krauser's chest, clutching his shirt. "Don't leave me," I begged between the tears and breaths.

We sat down on the bed and his fingers begun stroking my hair. "I'll be here," he whispered softly.

_I can't lose you, too._ I wasn't sure if I was just remembering that from the last time I'd seen Sherry, or if it was me saying that to Krauser. In this state, I would be damn lucky if I'd be able to know sweet from sour.

He held me to his chest and eventually I cried myself to sleep. How long would this go on? How fucking long would I be missing her?

* * *

"Sleepy head," I heard. "Got someone on the phone for you," Krauser told me.

"Huh?" Pain was flowing through my arms and it fucking _hurt._

He picked me up and brought me to the kitchen where he quickly picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Rebecca!"

I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me, however, this was only for about five milliseconds. "Sherry!? Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Where are you? Raccoon City is gone!"

"Well… We're not in Raccoon City.

"Wait, we? Sherry who are you with? Where the Hell did they take you?"

"I'm with Leon. He was supposed to be a police officer and he's super nice. We're by a 7 Eleven."

"7 Eleven? I think Jack and I passed that…"

"You know where it is?"

"Yeah, can you guys just stay there?"

" I don't think we can. But, here, talk to Leon," she said to me.

"Hi, you must be Rebecca." His voice was deep enough, and he seemed tired. Of course he would be; it must've been damn hard to get out of Raccoon City.

"OhmygodIcan'ttellyouhowfreakedoutIwasI'msofucking gladthatSherry'salright, how could I ever repay you?" I said. I glanced around the kitchen to see Krauser with a smirk on his face. How could I ever repay _him_? Ten more minutes alone and I probably would've killed myself.

"Maybe come pick us up? We're about forty miles from Raccoon City," he said to me. I could imagine a weary smile on his face.

"I'll see what I can do. Please just stay put," I told him.

He put Sherry back on the phone and I knew I was almost crying again. She was _alive._ "I really miss you," she said softly.

"I really miss you too," I told her right before the line went dead.

As I put the phone down, I knew I had no real right to ask any more from Krauser. But he was the only one I knew that was in with the government-albeit the same government that blew up Raccoon City, but out of anyone, I knew there were only so many ways to get rid of an outbreak.

I looked at him, biting my lower lip. I was so utterly embarrassed and… "She's alive," I said.

He nodded slowly.

"7 Eleven, a ways out of the city."

Another nod.

"I don't think, I mean maybe, but if we could drive there, I know it's your car and I have no right to ask, but she means so much to me and...and if something really _had_ happened to her…"

"I know. I was here last night," his voice was so calm. It eerily reminded me of Wesker.

I looked down, trying to avoid his blue eyes. Soon enough though, I felt warm hands tilt my chin up. My heart sped faster, anticipating a particular outcome. Maybe that's what I needed, just for him to…

"Don't be afraid to ask," he told me.

I swallowed. "Can you please help me get to them? I just…"

His calloused fingertips tucked a few strands of hair behind my ear before he pulled away. "Of course," he said to me. "Get dressed into something more suitable and we can go."

I smiled and hugged him. "Thank you, Krauser."

He hugged me back. "Anytime, now come on."

I pulled away and rushed into the bedroom, barely remembering to close the door. I stripped and then got redressed into a faded blue button up that I tucked into a pair of black jeans. I came back out and shoved my feet into my sneakers, waiting for Krauser-he'd gone into the bedroom as I'd come out.

"Thanks," I said again to him as he came out.

He gave me a small smile.

That was enough for me to know how that he understood how important this was for me.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_So, dark stuff like this should be over, or at least for quite a few chapters. I know that self harm isn't something to take lightly-my best friend does it and it breaks my heart every time she tells me she's done it. And no matter what I say, she says that is her release. But, luckily this is only a one time thing for you liked how Krauser was there for her?... Or were y'all thinking Wesker was going to pop in like he did with her father?...

Please review?

~_HolleringHawk65_


	24. Chapter 24

_**Rebecca**_

"Relax," Krauser told me for the umpteenth time.

I couldn't help that the last time I'd been in a helicopter was right after the Arklay incident and I was trying so hard not to think of Wesker.

_Flowers. Pink stuff. Cotton candy. Silver. Dog tags… _

_Flowers. Dogwood. Puppies. Fluffy dogs... _

_Flowers. Fruit. Fruit trees. Tropical island. Hot guys…_

I looked over at Krauser. He was sitting right next to me, hand on his thigh. Oh so hesitantly, I reached over and wrapped my hand around his. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw his head start to turn to see what was going on, so I quickly looked away.

He squeezed my hand.

* * *

When the helicopter landed, I pulled my hand away from his and started unbuckling. God, we were right in front of the 7 Eleven. I was so worried that something had happened in the twenty-one hours since I'd talked to them.

I thought my heart was going to stop when I saw the smashed bottom pane on the door, but I continued on and opened the door.

A lean, blonde, and bloody man was on the floor, sitting up. Right next to him on the floor was a half asleep Sherry.

She opened her eyes and lifted her head to look at me. She scrambled up and ran over the short distance to me, throwing her arms around me in a tight hug. Tears were streaming down both our faces as I returned the hug, bringing her as close as possible to me.

"I thought…" I couldn't finish the sentence. She didn't need to know what I'd thought.

"I was so scared," she told me, her face pressed into me. "There were so many...and the monsters…"

"It's alright, you're safe with me now," I told her, looking over to the man I could assume was Leon. He'd gotten up and was leaning slightly against the counter, holding his shoulder. He came over to me and I thought I could hear my heart thumping.

_He's going to tell me something I don't want to hear. He's going to say something that makes me want to crawl home and under the covers._

"I need to talk to you," he told me.

Sherry pulled away slightly. "I'm going to go get a Slurpee. Do you want one?"

"Sure," the two of us said in unison. I looked up at him and smiled slightly. By now I could hear Krauser getting out, probably checking to make sure everything was alright.

Before anyone could come in and possibly interrupt what Leon needed to tell me, the two of us walked into the girl's bathroom.

"Sherry told me you were in S.T.A.R.S.," he told me.

"Yeah, why?"

"Claire Redfield told me about Chris, who'd told her about what happened in the Arklay mountains in a letter*," he explained. "Which means you know about zombies and everything."

"I can assure you I know a whole lot more than t-virus infectees," I said to him.

"I'm not really surprised. I guess you wouldn't know anything about G, though, would you?"he asked.

_The G-virus?_ I wracked my mind for it, but in the end, I shook my head.

"William Birkin created it. He injected himself with it and mutated into a monster. He also infected Sherry," he told me.

"No…" Oh God, I felt like I was losing her again. "Take it back. God dammit Leon, take it back!"

"Claire and I were able to make the cure for it, following instructions from a dying Annette, but in reality, it's only dormant. Sherry has regenerative abilities," he said.

"Dormant...as in it could, eventually…"

"Let's try not to think about that, alright? She'll be fine for now," he told me.

"You look like you could sleep for a week," I said, trying to get my mind off what he'd just told me. "Come on, let's go."

He smiled in relief. "Gladly."

The two of us walked out to find Krauser standing in front of the Slurpee machine. I looked over at Sherry, whose cheeks were bright pink and the front of her already dirty outfit had a fresh _Cherry_ red stain.

I cleared my throat, earning Krauser's attention. I raised an eyebrow and he shrugged before handing a Cherry and Coke Slurpee to Sherry. "what do you two want? It's not everyday you get free Slurpees."

"Cherry and Coke," we said in unison. Again.

He chuckled. "Guess I'm the only one having Blue Raspberry."

After the Slurpees were gotten, we all just kind of sat around, drinking them, even though I knew Leon was in pain. He needed medical attention or that bullet wound would be sure to get infected, assuming it wasn't already.

Krauser seemed to have read my mind and left the building for a moment, just to return with a med kit. I smiled and took it from him, our fingertips brushing slightly, before I turned around and kneeled next to Leon.

I removed the dirty gauze before unbuttoning his shirt. I'd be blushing like a fool if this was under different circumstances. But it wasn't, and what I was doing was more important than admiring a man's physique.

I opened the case, looking at what I had to work with. Standard things for a military group, I guess, definitely not that much different from what I had in S.T.A.R.S.. I poured some alcohol on a sterile cloth and brought it up to the wound. Leon seemed to have stifled crying out, considering his body jerked forward.

The best I could do after cleaning it was stitch it up. There was no painkillers in the kit, but Leon and Sherry had leftover herbs that seemed to ease his pain. He hung his head, looking as though he wasn't going to wake up. Nervous, I stood up and glanced over my shoulder and at Krauser. He'd remained silent the whole time, watching us, but now he came over.

"Need help, Kennedy?" he asked, extending his hand.

He slowly opened his eyes, looking slightly delirious. He took Krauser's hand and was pulled up effortlessly.

"Come on, let's get you two to a hospital," he muttered under his breath to Leon and Sherry.

* * *

A day later, I was walking into Leon's hospital room. The surgery to remove the bullet was a bit harder than the doctors had anticipated and the twenty-two year old was still out cold. Sherry was sitting by his bed, holding his hand. She only spared a glance at me.

"I brought you something to eat," I told her.

She shrugged.

"Sherry, please don't do this," I said to her.

"They're taking me away when Leon wakes up," she explained to me. Her grey eyes looked over at me. "And you're with this Krauser guy when you're supposed to be with Wesker and I'm losing you! Maybe I already have…"

I came over, placing the tray on the bedside table before I kneeled down next to Sherry. "I'm not with Krauser, we're just friends. I promise you that. But Sherry, you know Wesker's gone."

She sniffed. "I don't care! He loved you! He just never told you…"

I slowly stroked Sherry's hair, feeling like a doting mother. "Honey, Wesker didn't love me."

"Yes he did! He kept a picture of you in his desk; Leon found it!"

"Lot of people keep pictures of friends in their desks," I told her, trying not to show my surprise.

"But...but he _said_ to me…"

My fingers stopped. "What did he say to you?"

"It was before he left for that mission. He stopped by the house and told me that all he cared about was you and me and that if something ever happened to him, he wanted the two of us to be friends! And I thought we were…"

"Sherry, we are friends," I told her; I don't know how she could think otherwise-I called her at least three times a week, we knew so much about each other; I _cared_ about her.

She shook her head. "Just go," she said softly.

I leaned forward and kissed Sherry's forehead. "I love you," I told her.

She refused to say anything and just returned to looking at Leon and holding his hand.

As I turned around and was about to walk out I heard, "Love you too," softly fall off her lips.

I went out to the waiting room where Krauser was talking to some other government agents. He looked pretty upset, but that didn't give me any pause as I went over to him. As I stood by him, he fell silent.

"Let's go," I said softly.

"Are you sure?"

I nodded and he said good-bye to the other people. We walked out into the autumn air and to his El Camino. As soon as we sat down, he broke the silence.

"What happened?" he asked me.

"She's upset with me," I explained. "And she's mad at everyone else, too, or at least I think so. She told me that 'they' were taking her away."

"I know, Becky, and I'm sorry, but there's only so many strings I can pull," Krauser told me.

"It was bound to happen," I said softly.

"Care to tell me what Leon told you?" he asked me.

"Touchy subject," I told him, resting my elbow on door, so much like I had in Wesker's car.

"That can't be your defense for everything."

I sighed. "It won't be. Just give me some time, alright?"

He sighed in return. "Whatever you say, Cupcake."

I smiled, despite the fact that I rolled my eyes.

* * *

_**Author's Note: **_Y'all had to see that side of Sherry coming, right? Anyways, probably in chapter 26 or 27 a twelve year old version of my tied-for-third favorite guy character will be introduced! (just to say-Wesker = 1, and Krauser & Leon = 2) Anyone got some guesses?

Uh, there was something else I wanted to say...grrrr, this nearly _always_ happens! In the next chapter there is some more Albert (and Henry...) and some sort of revelation?... Something about over 3,000 views and thanks yous... I really need to start taking notes on this or stop working when I'm half asleep (though, then I would never get any writing done)... I'm going to remember it right after I post this, I know it!

Anyway. Please review, and until next update! ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	25. Chapter 25

**_Wesker_**

"Hold still," I told Henry.

"I'm sorry that I don't enjoy being a _test subject_," he growled as he tugged against his restraints.

I smirked. "This is only to improve your already remarkable skills."

A dark chuckle escaped him. "Wouldn't be surprised if this made you able to control me."

I shook my head as I injected the final shot into the IV.

"So what exactly is this stuff? Permanent steroids?" Henry asked me. With every word his voice got softer; raspier.

"Something like that."

And with that, I snapped his neck.

* * *

"Here I thought we were friends," Henry told me the next day as he came down the stairs in pajama pants.

I looked over at him from the couch. "You're alive, aren't you?"

His now bright blue eyes stared at me. "Dick," he muttered.

"Your cousin certainly did not have your manners," I told him.

He growled and was over to me in less than a second, hands around my throat. I gagged as I tried to wrestle him off of me, but his weight and my position were not to my advantage.

"You don't get to mention her," he growled. "Got it?"

I double tapped his shoulder-our usual sign when we had practice wrestling matches.

He got off of me and I instantly sat up and started rubbing my neck. "Might've made you a little too strong."

Henry scoffed. "I wouldn't have killed you."

"On purpose," I shot back.

He looked at me. "I know my limits."

"No, you _knew_ your limits. That was when you were simply a man."

He rolled his eyes. "And now I should kneel at your feet and call you a god for what you did, I suppose?" he asked me.

"Feel free to start doing that whenever," I told him.

He laughed. "Lord Albert, the God of Science," he said in between chuckles. "Must sound nice to you."

"It does have a certain ring to it," I muttered.

"Have you had breakfast recently? I'm starving," he said to me.

"Look at the time, Korozov. It's quarter to one."

"In the afternoon? Well, I guess I should be damn glad that I'm off of work for the next thirteen days," he told me.

I got up. "It does sound like an awfully good time for something more to eat though," I said.

We went to the kitchen and I watched Henry as he started to get his usual breakfast of eggs, fruit, toast, juice, and milk together. However, as he was reaching for the juice-which just _happened_ to be in a glass bottle-his hand spasmed and he dropped the bottle. Instead of using his new founded abilities, he jumped back, cursing as the juice and glass went all over the floor.

"Are you alright?" I asked him, staying at my relatively safe spot next to the table.

"Peachy, Al, just freakin' peachy."

"Just calm down. You can't get angry until you get a better handle-"

"Don't _coach_ me, Wesker, I'm not an idiot. I know you think you're so much higher than me, but just remember that _you_ picked _me_ off of the streets."

I took one deep breath. "You're right," I told him.

He looked at me, surprised. It reminded me of Will, actually.

"I am?"

"Yes, now clean up this mess," I told him, a smirk on my lips.

He smiled at me; I'd just have to bear with his mood swings like I did with my own. He looked like he wanted to say something else, but instead, the twenty-four year old set right about to picking up the glass and getting the juice up with paper towels, not caring that he had stained his pajama pants in the process.

He looked at me when he was done for only a moment before he started hacking up blood.

"Henry!" I closed the distance between us. I started going through everything since I'd snapped his neck-every heartbeat, the mood sequences, the way he was.

As I tilted his head towards me, I thought I could feel my heart sinking to the pit of my stomach as I saw that the bright blue eyes had turned grey.

"God damn it Henry! Stay with me!" After everything, I couldn't lose him. Couldn't lose him after seven years. Couldn't lose him after the Hell I'd been through. Just…

Couldn't…

Eventually, he seemed to black out. All I did was hold him, staying on the floor.

"Dad…" he mumbled in his unconscious state.

I swallowed hard as I picked him up. Henry felt like a doll in my arms, curling into my arms. I took him upstairs to his room, laying him on the bed. Instead of leaving the room, I moved his reading chair over next to his bed and sat down.

And I waited.

* * *

"What happened?"

Half asleep myself, I lifted my head up from the back of the chair. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. Now tell me what happened."

"Just some unforeseen consequences," I told him.

He groaned as he relaxed against the sheets. "You science people and the 'unforeseen;' it'll drive me insane one of these days."

"Henry, you know that the 'unforeseen' is part of science. I have to explore every option to figure out what's going on."

"This wasn't much of an option though…"

I hesitated. "You were the option."

He propped himself up on his elbows "Well I figured that out. But...why?"

I stared at him. "Does that really matter?"

"Yeah, it does, and I think you know why."

I sighed. "Please don't play _that_ card."

"What card?"

I rubbed the bridge of my nose. "Muller," I said simply.

He looked at me, trying to seem unaffected, despite the fact he flinched faster than the speed of light. "Dad, seriously?" -the words rolled so effortlessly off of his tongue, I don't think he rightfully realized it. "I don't want to talk about this."

"I don't either," I told him.

"Right. Because you love Rebecca."

"Do you know how much you sound like a temperamental teenager right now?" I asked him.

"Because you make me feel like one!" he shot back, sitting up too fast. He groaned and leaned forward, clutching his left hip. I chuckled and he frowned. "Stop that."

"Why?"

"Because…" he shrugged. "I'm-we're-"

"Family."

He nodded. "Yeah, that's what it feels like, doesn't it?"

"We're two adult men; it's not a bad thing that we have a familiar feeling with each other."

"Wesker, that sounds wrong."

"I'm straight!" I told him, swatting his shoulder.

He pulled me closer, a grin on his fourteen-years-younger face. "That's great for you, Dad," he teased.

I rolled my eyes and started to pull away. "Alright, son, let's try to get some food into you."

"Yessir!"

"You have no experience with a father figure, do you?" I asked him over my shoulder as I got up and walked through the doorway.

"I had an uncle," he reminded me as he followed.

"Yes, but he was rarely home."

"My aunt was very strict towards me," he added.

"She was simply a severe woman, if I remember correctly."

He laughed. "Yeah, but she _loved_ you," he told me.

"I do have a certain charm," I reminded him.

"I know this is weird, but I was wondering...do your sunglasses affect your mood?" he asked me.

I stopped in front of the fridge, looking over to him. "What do you mean?" I asked him.

"Well...you're nicer, I guess, when they're not on…Sometimes, it seems like you're battling yourself though, then you put on your sunglasses and you're calm and cold."

"Calm and cold?" I repeated.

"Is that all you heard?" he asked me.

"No, I was listening, and you might be onto something there," I told him.

"I hope I don't have to wear sunglasses all of the time. God, that would suck," he said to me as I placed a bowl of rice krispies with marshmallows and strawberries. Like a dejected teenager, he moved the crackling cereal around with his spoon.

I smiled on the inside as I sat down, with my own bowl, across from him. I wondered if the rare,sweet, breakfast would sooth him enough for me to pitch my idea to him.

Henry, who rarely missed anything, was watching me. "You do realize that the longer you look like that, the more you distract me, and therefore it is just less time I have to eat until my krispies are one soggy mess, right?"

I chuckled before talking. "You know that your contract with USO is over on January first, right?"

"I do know, though I'm confident that they'll offer me another one," he told me. "I was 'trained' under your wing, after all."

I glanced down at the table. I imagined myself on thin ice, reaching out for…

Never mind that.

"What if you didn't accept it?" I asked him.

He sighed. "Die. Why?"

"I mean if you had another job that was less involved in-"

"Bioterrorism and other shady businesses? Probably sleep a little bit better at night. Why?"

I tapped on the table. "How do you feel about SOCOM?" I asked him.

Henry, who'd just put another spoonful into his mouth, spit it all out onto the table. "You want me spying on Krauser?! Isn't that what Ada is for?"

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Certain complications with Ms. Wong have arisen and she is not exactly under my disposal."

"Right. Of course."

"Can you please at least consider it?" I asked him.

"After everything I've already considered for you, I guess this wouldn't be much. It's not like I have friends at Umbrella," he told me.

I tried to not seem to smug as I smiled. "Thanks Henry."

He shrugged. "Really, it's nothing. I've already sold my soul to you, so it doesn't matter."

I winced. "Are you comparing me to the Devil?" I asked him.

"To be fair, you _do_ have red eyes now…"

"But I was never an angel," I countered.

He smirked. "That is true. I suppose that means you're a...demon?"

I rolled my eyes. "Just eat your soggy krispies."

"Yes, God Albert of Science," he said under his breath. He glanced up at me, his blue eyes sparkling. We shared a smile and I wondered if this was what it was like to have a son.

Probably not.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Hello to all of you lovely readers! I hope this chapter was acceptable! (I almost forgot to post today) Sometimes I feel that people get annoyed when I start weaving another story into an already existing story, and of course no one actually _tells_ me, so I never really know...

How would ya'll feel about a Henry and Wesker backstory oneshot? You'd finally know who Henry really is (if you haven't guessed correctly yet) :)

I hope everyone had a good week! Thanks for reading and pretty please review?

~_HolleringHawk65_


	26. Chapter 26

_**Disclaimer: **_I don't own Pokemon or any of its characters, Nintendo/Game Freak does. I'm just a fan girl.

* * *

_**Rebecca**_

"So how would you feel about less hours?" Tanya asked me.

It was October thirteenth; Sherry was firmly in government custody, Krauser was off on another mission, and Leon was due to training as soon as his wound was satisfactorily healed. The world seemed chaotic and topsy turvy and I'd found work as a way to distract myself.

Which meant, if I was being completely honest, I have no idea what I'd be doing if I worked less. Probably moping around. Maybe I'd wander the city, exploring it. Though moping around seemed more likely.

"Uh, I'm not sure. I'd guess it'd be alright, why?"

"We just hired another worker from opening to five thirty," she told me.

"Why wouldn't Billy tell me?" I asked her.

"Well...he was embarrassed that he didn't ask you about it before," she explained.

I rolled my eyes and put the rag down before walking to the kitchen. Billy was 'innocently' talking to the chef about today's specials. He turned around and jumped slightly before smiling.

"Hi, Becky, what's up?"

"Oh, nothing much, just got my hours cut back," I told him.

"You're getting paid the same," he countered.

"I don't care. We kind of agreed this is how I'd work, and you're not really holding up your end of the bargain!"

He put his hands on my shoulder. "You need to relax. If you're honestly that desperate for human interaction, feel free to come in early, alright?"

I nearly smacked him.

"_Desperate_ for _interaction_?! Who am I?!"

"Somebody who really needs to quite down," he said, maintaining a calm composure.

I rolled my eyes and pushed away. "So when do I meet this person?"

"She's coming in later to work out some papers," he explained to me.

"Alrighty then. You'll have to point her out to me," I said as I turned around.

"Wouldn't dream of anything else," he said after me.

* * *

I was doing my daily practice of wiping the tables down at one o'clock when the door opened and my ears heard the daily occurence of a mother talking to her son. I looked over and saw a young boy, probably around Sherry's age, with brown hair and hazel eyes, playing on one of those Gameboys, while his mother exasperatedly tried talking to him.

"Hi Marissa," Billy said, coming out from the kitchen and towards the woman. "Becky, this is Marissa Nivans, and her son Piers. Marissa, Piers, that's Becky, my left hand woman."

"Nice to meet you," I told them, coming and shaking her hand first. Piers glanced up, offering a small wave before shuffling off to sit at a barstool, completely enraptured by his game. Knowing that I had no part in the papers they had to go over, I went over to my-somewhere along the way, that's what it'd become-bar.

"Whatcha playin'?" I asked him.

"Pokemon Red," he answered.

I sat on the stool next to him. "I've heard a little bit about that; is it fun?" I asked him.

He nodded. "I've already beaten all eight gym leaders and I'm on my way to the Elite Four with my team of Charizard, Pikachu, Vaporeon, Nidoking, Kabutops, and Persian."

The words nearly went in one ear and out the other, but I nodded anyway. "Tell me about the game."

He smiled shyly as he started explaining how the player character started in Pallet Town, and got their first pokemon from Professor Oak. Then they got to go to Viridian Town, then to the forest...I listened to him with real interest, letting him talk about something he clearly didn't do very much at home.

"...And it's just so awesome!" he finished.

"That's great," I said to him, smiling.

He took a sip of a Shirley Temple I'd gotten for him somewhere along the way. "Maybe you could get Blue and then we could trade! I know you can't be a girl, but it's totally worth overlooking that to play this!" he told me.

I laughed. "I'll see what I can do."

* * *

So that's how I got to be standing in the game store the next afternoon, picking up the basic off-white Gameboy and a copy (of which there weren't many of) of Blue.

"That'll be a hundred and twenty three dollars and sixteen cents," the cashier told me.

I sighed and handed over my credit card.

_Stupid. This'll be stupid and I'll regret it._

Thought the girl who, five hours later, was on her couch already hooked on the curiously looking creatures and in Mt. Moon.

* * *

I went to Stiletto early the next day, knowing that Piers would be there because he was homeschooled and Marissa didn't want to leave him at the apartment.

He was sitting at the bar again, school books in a neat pile, with sheets of work on top. In front of him was his Gameboy.

I sat at the seat next to him again, tapping his shoulder. "Morning Piers," I said warmly.

He looked over, a smile on his face. "Hi Rebecca! How are-hold on, you got Blue! You're so cool!"

I smiled. In the back of my mind, I knew I was doing this because he was Sherry's age, and since I'd practically lost her to the government, I was going to the next best thing.

I also wondered if this meant I was a stalker.

"Did you get Squirtle? Squirtle is _so_ cool, but since I got Red I figured I'd get Charmander. I think Bulbasaur is for little girls," he scrunched up his nose a bit.

"I did get Squirtle," I told him.

"Awesome! I can't wait until we can trade. I'm gonna get a cable as soon as I get my allowance!" he told me, a smile plastered across his face.

While waiting for my shift to come up, we just sat there, talking. He told me the best move move combinations to have for which pokemon, how to evolve some of them; he was amazing.

"Piers honey, we have to go to the apartment now," Marissa told as she came over at five thirty.

He sighed. "Bye Rebecca," he said, hugging me. "See you tomorrow!"

"Bye Piers, see ya," I replied as I got up.

"You're really nice to that kid," Billy said to me as I got behind the bar.

I shrugged. "There a reason not to be?"

"Nah, just saying. Do you have any idea when Jack will be back?" he asked me.

"Nope." I resisted the urge to bite my lip. Maybe I was just paranoid, but I was worried about losing him. I tried to remind myself that he was more than competent, but there was still the fear, even if I was able to mask it.

"You alright?"

I shrugged again as I itched my arms through the gauze (as a side note, it's a bitch to put on myself.) I suddenly remembered as I saw him look down that I'd never told him about what had happened that night.

"What happened?" he asked me.

"Just had a rough night," I told him, trying to dismiss it.

"When?"

"Billy, come on. It happened, and now it's over. It wasn't that much of a big deal," I tried explaining to him.

"Fine. I'll just ask Jack when he get's back," he told me before disappearing off, most likely to the storage room.

Once again, as some people started coming in, off from work and building up for the weekend, I lost myself in my job. I was content being here, probably more than I would've been in Bravo team.

I winced at the thought, but my mind wouldn't stop the train of thought.

I was the medic. I should've been able to save them somehow. But I hadn't, and now I was the sole remaining member of Bravo team. With that came the thought that was more than likely true.

I was a complete failure.

_Stop it. Now is not the time for some god damned self-pity time. Now is the time for work. Work is good. Work is soothing. Now get to it._ For some utterly odd reason, the words were said in Krauser's voice.

One o'clock came too soon. We cleaned up and it was back to an empty apartment. I hated this, but it's not like I could ask Krauser to give up his job so he could be home for me when I got back. He did what he did for a reason. Now, granted, it wasn't a reason that I _knew_, but there was a reason. There always seemed to be at least one when it came to him.

Begrudgingly, I took my shower and laid down on the bed. The red digits on the clock told me it was already three thirty. I sighed and rolled over, facing the windows, able to see cars going by in the street below.

Cars that probably held people who had no idea what actually went on in their own nation, but nonetheless there were cars.

Eventually, sleepiness overcame me and I was able to fall asleep.

* * *

The next day, the cycle was repeated again.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Well, there it is. Piers is my tied for third favorite guy character (if you're wondering who the other one is, it's Jake.) I hope you liked this chapter! I think it's pretty sad that (while Piers is awesome) Becky fills the Sherry-void with him. Not to mention she's still depressed (damn Sherry!). I wonder who will get her out of that?... *whistles casually*

Random-ish question: would anyone be upset if Leon was gay in this?

Pwease weview! :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	27. Chapter 27

**_Rebecca_**

For Halloween, Billy and Tanya thought it would be a _fantastic_ idea to throw a party at Stiletto. This meant we were opening (extremely late) at seven thirty in order to get ready for it. Marissa and Piers were there before me, the former dressed as Dorothy (which, by the way, for a woman who was thirty-eight, she pulled it off damn well) and Piers dressed normally in jeans and a plaid button up.

As I walked in, taking my new denim jacket off, Billy whistled. "I wonder what Krauser would do if he saw you dressed like that," he said to me.

I looked over to him and rolled my eyes. I had on a cowgirl boots, high-waisted denim _shorts_, a black braided belt with a silver buckle threaded through the loops, along with a sleeveless tan shirt that was tied at the bottom with your run of the mill western decorations. And, to top it off, a red plaid kerchief was around my neck and I had on my black fingerless gloves.

The scars were on my arms, 1/8 inch wide, from right below my wrist to right above the crook of my elbows. I didn't wear gauze wrapped around them, wearing them for the world to see.

"He probably would tie a blanket around me," I told Billy, who was dressed as a mobster. I was still worried-it'd been four weeks with no word. _Four_ weeks.

I mean, even _Leon_ bothered to call me.

Tanya laughed as she came out of the storage room. Her red hair stood out against her white with gold brocade fancy dress*, and she looked like a beautiful mixture between an angel and a princess.

We all pitched in setting up, putting up properly colored paper streamers and other Halloween themed decorations.

Right at seven thirty, Billy went over to the door and flipped the closed sign over to open. Slowly, one by one, customers came in, some new, some regulars; most of them were dressed in one costume or another.

Marissa and I were behind the bar, working double time. I realized as I was getting the drinks out faster than she was that she'd never really seen the bar at full business, while this was practically what I'd seen every weekend. It made me feel good to know that I'd done something a woman twenty years my senior hadn't.

"What do you recommend?" a familiar voice asked me. "You see, my friend and I feel like trying something new."

I looked up from the bar, my lips bursting into a smile. "Krauser!" I said, restraining myself from climbing over the bar and hugging him.

"Hey Cupcake," he said, smiling in return.

For a moment, I just stared at him, unconsciously biting my lower lip. "Four weeks," I said softly.

He looked apologetic. "Becky, I honestly didn't have any way of contacting you…"

I shook my head. "It doesn't matter 'cuz you're here now. Anyway, you sure you want me to surprise you?"

"Hey, nice to know you're forgetting about me," I heard someone say.

I looked over and smiled as I saw Leon slipping in between two people to stand next to Krauser. "How could I ever?"

"Let's just get to those drinks," Krauser told me. I nodded and turned around, grabbing the bottles I needed to make a classic Hurricane. I set the two finished drinks in front of them, smiling at both. They'd both taken a bar stool, sitting next to each other. Leon quickly took the drink, sipping it rather happily, while Krauser was a bit more hesitant.

However, they both seemed pleased and, upon realizing this, I went about to other customers.

* * *

By the time the bar was over at 3 in the morning, Piers and Marissa had already been gone for three hours and Billy had been helping me. I was tired, to say the least, but I still had to drive home.

Especially since Krauser, though he'd never really admit it to me, was more than a little bit hammered. Though, as I saw the smaller blond practically clinging to Jack as he got up, he wasn't half as bad as Leon.

"Does he have anywhere to go?" I asked Krauser I slipped into my jacket after cleaning up the bar and some of the immediate area. We'd deal with the decorations later.

"Nope," he told me, picking Leon up into his arms.

"I guess, if you don't mind, he could stay with us tonight," I said softly.''

"Sounds good to me," the SOCOM agent said as he put Leon in the back seat of the Camino. He walked around and sat down in the passenger seat as I sat in the driver's seat. "It's good to be back in here," he told me, running his fingers along the inside of the door.

"I've been taking care of her," I told him, smiling as I turned the ignition.

"Her?" he questioned.

"Yeah, aren't most cars hers? I don't think I've ever heard a four wheeled vehicle be called 'him,'" I explained to him.

"Whatever you say, Cupcake," he said. I didn't have to glance over to know he was smirking. "Her," he muttered.

I rolled my eyes as I drove the short distance to the apartment building. "I don't understand why you call me that..."

"Because you're small and cute, and sometimes you've got this kick to you, like your batter was spiked or something," he explained to me as we got out.

I blushed, taking it all as a compliment. The three of us-or, really, Krauser carrying Leon with me in front-went into the complex, then the elevator, then the hallway, and finally the apartment.

I walked into it, going into the kitchen to allow enough room for Krauser to get in, I realized something.

There was only a couch and the bed. There was no sleeping bag that I was aware of, or an air mattress.

I swallowed, wondering how we were going to do this. Krauser laid Leon down on the couch, then took off his jacket and boots. He reached over and got the blanket, laying it over the passed out blond.

He straightened up and looked over at me. I could tell he was thinking the same thing I was.

"I'll sleep out in the Camino's bed," he told me, already walking over to the door.

I grabbed his wrist as he walked by me, causing him to stop. He arched an eyebrow, looking down at me.

"Just lay in the bed with me. It's not like we haven't done it before," I reminded him. "If it makes you feel better, I'll hit you over the head with something if you try anything."

He sighed. "Fine. Be like this."

"Like what? I just don't want you getting a kink in your back or something," I said to him.

Suddenly, he picked me up and threw me over his shoulder. I laughed as I wondered what caused him to act like this.

He slowly put me down on the bed, his mouth inches from mine. God, I just wanted him to kiss me. I propped myself up on my elbows, wanting him to take up the inch or two between us.

But he didn't. In fact, he pulled away completely. "I gotta take a shower," he told me.

"Okay," I said softly, before getting up and changing into pajamas; I'd shower in the morning. I went back to the bed and laid down, too tired to try to wait up for him.

Or, at least I thought so. He must've literally jumped in and out of the shower because five minutes later, the bathroom door opened and closed-but not all the way-and I heard him walk across the floor to the side of the bed. I could tell he was hesitating, but in the end, the bed dipped down under his wait.

He put an arm around my waist, holding me but not in a possessive manner. "'Night Becky," he whispered, the warmth of his breath right on my ear.

"Night Krauser," I replied softly before shutting my eyes.

* * *

In the morning, I woke up facing Krauser, or, to be more accurate, I woke up on top of Krauser, apparently using his head as a pillow. Embarrassed, I moved off of him, but I moved to the wrong side and I was now against him and the wall.

I sighed and stayed there as he turned onto his own side, an arm wrapping around me again. It's a good thing that work wasn't something I had to go rushing off to in the mornings.

A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened and I heard Leon shuffling in. I lifted my head slightly to look at him. He was standing there, staring at us, mouth opened slightly. Before I could even try to explain, he was gone and into the bathroom.

_Great. Now Leon saw this. But there's a perfectly logical-__**simple**__-explanation; we brought Leon to the apartment because he'd passed out, we gave him the couch, and we slept in the bed. But with less 'we's' because that implies a relationship._

I moved Krauser's arm off of me before sitting up. _Crap. Really, how does one get around someone of his size without waking him up?_

Taking the only course of action that seemed reasonable, I straddled him with the thought of getting right off of him-not giving him the _chance_ to wake up.

However, large hands were suddenly on my waist and his eyes opened. "What are you doing?" he asked me.

"Just trying to get out of bed," I told him.

"Right," he whispered, letting me go. "Sorry."

"S'alright," I said to him, getting off of him. "Need some coffee?"

"More of a tea person," he muttered, sitting up.

"Right. I'll just make both in that case," I told him, going out into the kitchen. I yawned as I got the ground coffee beans and then started getting the coffee ready. While that was straining into the coffee pot, I put water in the kettle and put that on the stove before locating all of the tea bags. How I never noticed that there was a whole drawer dedicated to them, I'd probably never figure out, but it was there now, so it didn't matter.

A few minutes later, Leon came out, immediately going over to one of the stools around the island. "Next time, stop me at drink four, alright? Or water it down. Or something."

"Coffee?" I offered, putting a cup and some aspirin in front of him.

"Thanks," he said before sipping it. He closed his eyes as he smelled the coffe before drinking more of it. I placed two aspirin pills right in front of him.

"So...you and Krauser..." he didn't look up at me.

"We didn't do anything except sleep next to each other," I told him.

"We could've slept in the same bed," Leon grumbled. "We're guys…"

"Yeah, but you were two _drunk_ guys," I said lightly. "Who knows what could've happened."

He blushed deeply, looking away. "Thanks for the coffee. Tell Krauser I hope he has a good day, I gotta get to Langley," he told me as he got up.

"The CIA headquarters?" I asked him, furrowing my brow.

"Yeah. Otherwise known as 'top training center for agents.' They deal out meds for the nightmares and the pain, too, so…"

"You've been having nightmares and taking medication?"

"Yeah. Haven't you?"

"A few, but not every night…"

He shrugged. "It's just another thing to set me apart, I guess."

As he walked past me, I grabbed his wrist and hugged him. "I'm always here if you need someone to talk to," I told him, pressing my face into his shirt even though it stilled smelled like Stiletto.

He hugged me back. "Thanks Becky, I'll remember that," he told me, leaning down so that he was talking into my hair.

I smiled and pulled away. "Need a ride to your car?" I asked him.

"Nah, you should stay here with Krauser; I'll walk. I'll call you later, alright?"

I nodded. "Sounds good; see ya."

He smiled before grabbing his jacket and walking out.

I felt my shoulders slump as I walked over to one of the stools and sat on it. I rested my elbow on the island and waited for Jack to come out.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** *_ = some where between a medieval type dress and a can-can girl.

So, I've got some good news! The chapter after this is November/Rebecca, chapter 28 is December/Rebecca, 29 might be December/Wesker, and then by chapter 30 it'll be January/Rebecca and she'll see Wesker again (and, if you really want to know, 31 will be January/Wesker)! Isn't it exciting? How many chapters has it been since they were together? Isn't it like ten or something?

Alright, so I also have two more questions. 1) should I start posting the Wesker/Henry backstory now or would you like me to wait until this is done? I already have chapter 1 waiting, I'm just not sure. 2) who do you feel should be Henry's love interest if he were to have one? (I was kinda sorta thinking about Leon, hence the question in the previous chapter...)

So that's that :) Hope you liked this update! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed previous chapters! Could we please keep it up?

Love all of you! :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	28. Chapter 28

_**Rebecca**_

"So Jack's still stateside?" Tanya asked me as I was putting my jacket on in preparation for the chilly weather outside.

"Yeah. He took the Camino to the headquarters for the next assignment. He should be back tomorrow morning and then he's leaving Monday," I explained to her.

It was November 13th (Friday, to be exact) and I'd been spending as much time as I could with Krauser. Some days he'd come to Stiletto and he talked to Piers and/or Billy, other days we'd just walk around the city, talking. It was like free therapy for both of us, even if he didn't know all of the details about July.

Specifically, how close I was to Wesker, why, what he'd done for me… That all still felt too personal. But I'd talked about nearly everything else, excluding my father.

"You should take the weekend off," she said to me. "Just spend time with Krauser."

"Are you sure?" I asked. "I don't want Marissa to have to stay late…"

"I'll take care of your shift. I'm here anyways," she told me, giving me one of her sweet smiles.

"Okay then… I'll see you Monday," I told her as I hugged her. "Thanks."

"You're welcome," she said to me. "Now shoo, or Billy will yell at me and tell me I'm keeping you too long."

I laughed. "Have a good night!" I said over my shoulder before I walked through the door. I could just barely make out Tanya telling me to do the same.

I put my hands in my pockets, going my usual way home. In my head, I was humming a song from the new 'it' band, Third Eye Blind, and before I knew it, I was singing it under my breath. "The clock, it bleeds for you, but you never got the timing right. I woke you up and I slit the throat of your confidence; and we laughed in the night and it felt all right." *

I was walking around the corner, just three and a half blocks away from my apartment building, when I felt someone grab at me. I instinctively screamed as loud as I could, thrashing about.

*One would think that I would have taken self-defense classes by now…*

"Shut up," the person-*a man, it was a man* and that made me flip out more-told me before smacking me. He threw me to the ground and I knew what was coming, I *knew* and I just started sobbing. I no longer screamed because I knew it was useless. It was always useless.

Just as he was about to grab at me-yank off my jacket and do lord knows what-a knife appeared through his chest. My eyes widened in shock but I didn't move or say anything. I guess I was used to grousome scenes by now, including people being killed for me.

_Well that sounds wrong._

The now lifeless body was pushed to the ground-a good distance away from me-and the man that was standing there wasn't who I expected it to be. I almost thought it would be Krauser, but it wasn't; the frame was too different-slightly smaller; wiry.

I couldn't really see him in this light, but I did notice the hand he held out. I took it and he pulled me up, chuckling as I stumbled forward. _That sounds familiar…_

"Are you alright?" he asked me, helping me back to the street where lamp posts were placed every few feet.

I looked at him in the yellow light, and I nearly instantly recognized him. "Bottle of Jack Daniels…" I said softly.

"You remembered," he said with a smile.

I looked over him again, re-studying something I'd already seen. He seemed to be the same, right down to the jeans and shoes, except for one thing. I looked at his face and held back a gasp. "Your eyes…"

The brilliant, luminscent, blue blinked.

I distinctly remember them being brown.

"Is something wrong with them?" he asked me.

"No, they're just…_bright_," I told him softly.

He smiled again. "Let's just get you home," he told me, putting a denim clad arm around my shoulders. Hesitantly, I leaned into him. _He would've already killed me if that's what he wanted…Right?..._

He walked me up to my apartment building. "I believe this is where I bid you ado?"

"Yes, I believe you're right. Thank you," I said to him. "Do you think you'll get in trouble?"

The stranger flexed his hands. "Trouble? Not likely. The man was an escaped criminal. It was part of my civilian duty to keep him from hurting someone else."

I nodded. "Who should I thank? I mean, what's your name?"

He smirked. "My name is Henry."

* * *

I walked into the apartment to be met with the TV on to some sappy romance, a bottle of wine on the floor, along with the smell of burnt toast.

I stood where I was, looking at the man on the couch.

I slowly took my jacket off as I looked at him. "Leon, what are you doing here?" I asked him.

The blond looked over at the sound of my voice. "Becky!" he slurred, so it sounded more like 'Vecky,' "want a glass?" he reached down for the bottle and took a swig. "Or a sip?" he hiccuped after he finished, raising his hand to his face as he did so.

"How did you even get in here?" I asked him.

"Jack," hiccup, "sent me a," hiccup, "the spare k-," hiccup, "ey." Hiccup.

"Why are you here?" I asked him again.

He ignored my question and looked back to the screen. The corner of his eyes were glistening, but I didn't say anything. In fact, I went into the kitchen to try to clean up whatever mess Leon had made. Water was all over the floor from what looked to be a failed attempt of mac and cheese, a beer bottle was lying in the sink while another one was lying on its side, propped up against the sink lining, and broken bits of glass were on the counter, as well as some on the floor.

I sighed and settled on cleaning the water first, throwing away the sopping wet paper towels. Next I tried to pick up all of the glass from the floor, carefully through that away, and then brushed the glass on the counter onto a paper plate. Then I poured the rest of the beer from the bottle down the drain and threw both of those away.

I turned around and gasped when Leon was practically right in front of me. "L-Leon?" I managed to squeak. There was something in _his_ eyes that freaked me out more than Henry's _ever_ could.

"I killed somebody in training today," he told me. I could smell all of the alcohol on his breath. "It was an accident. Honest. I'd never…" He leaned down, pressing his face against my shoulder. The tears were obvious now as they fell against my skin.

"Shhh, it'll be alright. Come on, come sit on the couch with me," I told him, placing my hands on his back. It was not a comforting thought to remind myself that he had at least forty pounds, not to mention six inches in height, on me.

We stumbled over to the couch, where I sat down and he practically fell next to me. His head rested on my lap and the tears slowly rolled down. In an effort to comfort him, I slowly stroked his hair.

"I killed a living person," he said again. The alcohol and the tears didn't help in the slightest with how intelligible the words sounded, but I could understand them. "Why did I do it? He just...he just came over and tapped me on the shoulder and I...I completely freaked…"

"Mistakes happen," I told him. "We just have to learn from them."

He closed his eyes. "Learn...learn not to kill…" he muttered as he seemed to fall asleep.

I continued stroking his hair, a motion that was probably more comforting-constant-for me than it was for him.

Eventually, around three thirty, I slowly got up, putting a pillow under Leon's head. I put the blanket around him as best as I could, picked up the wine bottle and set it on the counter, and walked off to bed.

* * *

"Becky," I woke up to. I opened my eyes and saw Krauser sitting on the edge of the bed. "Why is Leon passed out on the couch?"

I blinked, the memories from earlier fuzzy for me to remember. First it was the man, then Henry, then coming to the apartment...then I finally remembered what happened.

"He...he killed somebody in training yesterday," I said softly, sitting up.

Krauser was silent, looking at the floor. "Are you alright? He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No, why?"

He looked over at me, frowning. "Becky, you have a cut on your face," he told me, his tone clearly worried. Slowly, he reached out and traced it. I flinched but I didn't move away. It started on the right side of my forehead and ended in between my right eye and ear. "What happened last night?"

I leaned forward; into his arms. "Don't make me talk about it. Please."

Thankfully, he complied, not saying anymore. He held me against him, stroking my hair like I had for Leon.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here," he whispered.

"You can't always be the one to catch me when I fall," I said softly.

"I know." He kissed my forehead. "Want some breakfast? I can do the eggs and potatoes and you could do the coffee for you and Leon; after you clean yourself up, that is."

I nodded. "Sounds good to me."

* * *

When Leon woke up all he wanted to do was go back to sleep, so we let him after we gave him some aspirin. Jack and I had breakfast and then we went out again after writing a note for Leon that we would probably be back by three, even though we both thought he'd still be asleep by the time we got home.

We walked down by the cherry blossom trees even though it was freezing next to the water. Somewhere along the way, we'd started holding hands. We'd been doing it a lot, and along with hand holding came Billy and Tanya's teasing that we were dating.

As I thought about that, I absentmindedly squeezed his hand. Out of the corner of my left eye, I saw that Krauser glanced over at me.

"You alright, cupcake?" he asked me.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It was just a reflex thing," I explained to him.

"Whatever you say," he told me.

"Damn right," I said lightly.

He laughed and squeezed my hand. "Are you hungry?"

I shrugged. "Kind of."

"Come on then, let me take you out."

I smiled. "Okay."

* * *

If you don't count Wesker, the number of dates I've had would rhyme with 'hero,' so I guess eating out with Krauser was kind of like a date. Imagine me, and eighteen-nearly-nineteen year old who hasn't been on any dates…

But, that doesn't matter.

I sat down across the booth table from Krauser. The waitress gave us the menus, told us the specials (which was yet another thing that when one ear and out the other) and her name… I barely retained any of it.

"What would you like?" the waitress, a bubbly young blonde asked us.

"I'll just take a burger and Pepsi," Krauser told her.

I was looking at the menu. "A chicken sandwhich and root beer, please," I said to her.

"So are the two of you dating?" Hilda asked Wesker and me.

I nearly choked on my root beer and I saw that Wesker hadn't picked up his food. Meanwhile, Sherry had started eating her curly cheese fries.

"Rebecca is my co-worker," Wesker explained. "We're not supposed to date."

I blinked, flattening my hands against the table. This place wasn't even anything like the diner in Raccoon City. It had more of a cafe feel, like Stiletto, not the 50's diner with red and white vinyl seats and chrome edged tables.

"Are you alright?" Krauser asked me.

I nodded, not even bothering to look up at him. If I tried to talk, I knew my voice would crack. _Four months and I'm not over that. I'm not over him. After everything he'd done, all of the lies and falsities… Why can't I accept it? He's __**dead**__ so I shouldn't care. But I do._

_I'm not over Wesker, and I'm not quite sure when I will be._

"You look pale," Jack said to me. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?"

I forced myself to look up at him "Really Krauser, I'm alright. Just thinking."

He laughed. "Should've known. There's always something going through that pretty head of yours, Becky," he teased lightly. He reached over the table and squeezed my hand, smiling at me.

I smiled back at him.

* * *

That night in bed, as I thought about the upcoming day, which lead to next month and eventually to next year, I knew that I had to at least try to move on. This life with Krauser was better than the life I might've been able to have with Wesker, hypothetically considering that he hadn't been lying to us the whole time.

Krauser was better for me. He was there for me.

_But wasn't Wesker?..._

I sighed and turned onto my side, able to look through my open door to see Krauser sitting on the couch, TV muted like it usually was at night.

I watched his shadowed frame until he finally laid down too. Smiling to myself, I closed my eyes and let myself fall asleep.

* * *

_**Author's**_** Note****: **If you don't know Third Eye Blind, the song Rebecca is singing is 'Thanks A Lot' from their self titled debut album.

And, if any of you are wondering, Leon will be straight! I just have no idea who he'll be with *whistles casually*

I'm going to feel so bad when the word count decreases. Really, really bad. Anyways, two more chapters! So, that means the reunion chapter will be on the 24th, I think, yeah, that sounds right. Anyways.

So, I did end up (starting to) posting the backstory. It's currently called 'Don't Wonder' and is onink under A. Wesker for characters :)

Thanks for reading! :D

~_HolleringHawk65_


	29. Chapter 29

**_Wesker_**

I found myself pacing to the point where I wearing down the carpet.

"Where the fuck have you been!?" I yelled as soon as Henry walked in-mind you, _three_ days after yet another fatal mission for everyone except him. I restrained myself from tackling him, and then checking him over to make sure he wasn't hurt. The last thing I wanted to add to my mental resume was 'epic screw-up.'

He looked at me over his shoulder as he shrugged off his jacket. "Places," he said to me.

I bit the inside of my lip as I stared at him. "Care to elaborate?"

"No, not really," he told me as he put his jean jacket on the coat tree.

"Tell me where you were or I swear to Hell-"

"What? You'll kill me? Try it! I dare you Wesker, rip my heart out! Feel the blood drip down your hands as you realize you've killed me. Do it!" He unbuttoned the top buttons on his shirt so that his chest was exposed as he yelled at me.

I froze. "Henry…"

"What? It wouldn't even be the worst thing you've done! Tell me, what sets me apart from every other person in the world!"

"You know why," I growled.

"Oh, do I? Please, refresh my memory," he said to me.

"I'm not playing this game," I told him, turning to go upstairs. When I was at the middle stepped, I turned around and saw that Henry was still standing in the same spot; he hadn't even moved a millimeter.

"A man was going to rape her." The words left his mouth softly as he turned his head to look up at me. "Going to rip her clothes off and leave her for dead. She'd stopped screaming, just accepted it."

I blinked as I realized the glittering spots next to his eyes were tears. "You were watching Rebecca?"

"Yeah. Someone has to," he told me.

"And you saved her?"

"Why wouldn't I? I happen to give two-shits about civilians when I don't have an escaped B.O.W. on my ass," he explained for me before shaking his head. "I need a smoke. Care to join?"

I sighed and walked down the stairs; he'd saved Rebecca. The girl I was trying to force myself away from but it was not working at all. "It's an unhealthy habit."

"You didn't used to say that," he reminded me. "Used to encourage if it, if I do recall correctly."

"I think the virus has muddled your brain. Should I take some tests?"

He glared at me. "What am I, a horse? Do I need to be in perfect condition to go to every single race in the world? Or is it that you don't want me messing up when you have me in SOCOM?"

I pinched the bridge of my nose. "Not everything is about the next mission," I told him, irritated.

"'The next mission," he mimicked. "I'm freaking glad that Rebecca isn't moping around, fretting about _you._ It'd be a waste of a good woman," he growled, pushing past me and going upstairs.

"Sometimes I wonder if he's really twenty-four," I said to nothing except myself and the empty air around me.

* * *

_*Eleven Days Later*_

"Nope."

"Why not?" Henry asked me.

We seemed to be in the most ridiculous of situations; standing in the middle of a _grocery store_, the younger man holding up a turkey.

"We'd never finish it," I told him.

He growled and set down the turkey. "How about chicken then? You like chicken."

"I also like steak," I reminded him.

He sighed. "It's like talking to a woman!"

"Daddy, can we please get ice cream?" a little brunette girl asked her father.

Henry stopped short, staring at the family. A man with black hair dressed in a brown long sleeved shirt, jeans, and work boots. Two little girls, one in an orange dress with a cream cardigan and the other one was wearing dark green and a black leather jacket. The one in orange tugged on her father's shirt again.

"Please?" she asked again.

"Vanilla goes well with pie," the other one-the older, by the looks of it-chipped in.

The father sighed. "Fine. Helena, go get ice cream. Deborah, let's go get some cranberry sauce."

Henry stayed where he was, watching as the one girl walked away-rather angrily, I noted to myself-and the other happily skipped next to her father.

"Let's get a turkey breast," I relented, picking one that I'd been looking at up.

Henry turned around and smiled. "Sounds good."

We saw the small family once again at the checkout line. Helena was once again sulking while Deborah was rocking back and forth on her heels, already singing a Christmas song under her breath.

Henry grabbed the groceries as I paid and then we walked out to his Firebird. He sat down on the passenger seat with a sigh.

I sat down on the driver seat, hesitating before I turned the key. "We're a family," I reminded him. "Just a really odd one."

"Worse than the Addam's family," he said, leaning against the door. "Let's just go home. I want to actually try to celebrate Thanksgiving this year."

I hesitate before driving. I knew something was in Henry's mind, but not knowing exactly what it was had given the whole situation a dangerous edge.

The next day (Thanksgiving) I woke up rather early. Early for me is usually four, making rather early four fifteen.

Upon realizing that there was no possible way I was going back to sleep, I got up, instead of wasting my time pretending that I was trying to go back to sleep.

I went downstairs to find the TV already on (though, Henry seemed to have gotten a little bit lazy, so he might've never turned it off.)

I went into the kitchen, expecting Henry to be there, but it was empty. I went through every room, trying to find him. He wasn't in any room in the house, unless he kept avoiding me.

_I should've heard something by now. Where is he?_

"Henry!" I couldn't think of anything else except calling him. In a last ditch effort, I went into the garage-maybe he was working on the Firebird.

Well, the first thing I noted was the open garage door. The next notable thing was that the Firebird was still in the garage. Cautiously, I walked out of the garage and into the area surrounding the house.

"Why does there always have to be an ulterior motive?" a familiar voice asked.

I heard Henry laugh. "Don't play games with me, Alex."

"But you're so playable!"

I found the two in the stone gazebo. Henry was leaning against a pillar, smoking, while Alex fidgeting with the edges of his sleeves. Mind you, it wasn't out of nervousness-no, he was truly too sure of himself to be nervous-he was simply always hyper. Side effect, we all assumed.

Alex looked over at me. "Hello brother," he said, a smile on his slightly younger features.

Henry simply nodded before taking another drag. "Think we have enough for three?" he asked me.

It took me a four point seven seconds to remember what he was talking about. "Yes, I'm sure we do."

And so that was how on Thanksgiving, one of the most overly commercialized 'holidays', I ended up having dinner with both Henry and my 'brother' Alex. It is amazing on how one of the best-if not _the_ best-spec op agents and two of the smartest men in the world can't cook a turkey breast all of the way through.

It made _no sense_. I could've sworn I'd done this with the Birkins only a handful of years ago, yet when the three of us tried to do it, it wasn't cooked.

Alex was chuckling at our frustration as Henry and I walked away from the turkey. "This is _your_ fault," I growled.

"Oh, really now? As I recall, I tried compromising with _chicken_! But, no, all birds are below the all mighty Albert Wesker, aren't they!? You just want _steak_," Henry snarled.

"This is better than cable," Alex told us as he sat on the counter that was unoccupied by undercooked _turkey_.

"Shut up!" the two of us said in unison.

"Why don't y'all just order pizza? Or Chinese? Something edible," the black haired man suggested.

"Are you incapable of picking up a phone and pressing buttons?" I asked him. Henry chuckled and I glared at him, causing him to roll his eyes.

Alex reached over, picking up the phone. He opened a drawer and took out one of the take out menus that were neatly folded, quickly glancing at the number and punching it in.

Henry came over to me. "We're hopeless, aren't we?" he asked.

I sighed. "This is why I had mac and cheese in the pantry," I told him softly as Alex ordered.

The USO agent laughed. "Can I get it on record that you all but admitted you can't cook?"

"I can cook," I told him, "I just need a cook_book_."

"You're a genius!" he reminded me. "Why can't you memorize the recipe in under five seconds?"

"It doesn't always work like that," I told him.

"Yeah. Uh huh. _Right_. You just don't like cooking," Henry teased.

"No, it's more psychological than that," Alex said, having hung up the phone. "Right?"

I glared at my younger half. "We're not going into this right now. It's a holiday."

"Did you hear that!? _Now_ he pulls the holiday crap. He would _so_ be the mom," Henry said, leaning against the counter.

Alex chuckled. "Damn right; 'Wesker the Mother' has a nice ring to it, right? Or would it be Mother Wesker?"

"I'm not living through this," I said to them, retreating to my adopted study.

"_Tch_ Al, really? It's a _holiday_; spend it with your family," Alex told me, getting off of the counter.

I looked at him, my shoulders slumping. "Fine," I grumbled.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Was anyone at all confused by that? It's fine if you were. I feel like explaining it because I just watched the pilot of Sleepy Hollow on Fox and I'm officially freaked out, so here it is if any of ya need explanations.

Henry comes home a day or so after saving Rebecca. He says that to Wesker, Albert feels even more obligated to him now, yadaya, then it skips to shortly before Thanksgiving when they're at the grocery store (which in real life probably wouldn't have turkey so close to Thanksgiving, but heck, this is fan_fiction_) where they see Helena and Deborah (Harper) and it throws Henry off and makes him miss/want a real family (prompting Wesker to tell him that they are their own little dysfunctional family). Then, on Thanksgiving, Alex Wesker shows up (yay! The plot thickens even more ;p) and then it's just them being weird and I apologize once again if it seems choppy.

I will more than likely make up for this shorter chapter by writing way out of my usual word count in the next chapter because it's skipping to January (and Rebecca's birthday and also my personal highly anticipated reunion between Wesker and Rebecca. Or at least the beginning.)

Thank you to every single person who has reviewed! I have over a hundred reviews and that is truly just a wonderful thing! This is the first story of mine to ever do that and I'm so happy! Please keep it up (feedback is always highly appreciated!)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	30. Chapter 30

**_Rebecca_**

"Surprise!"

I stopped short as I walked into the living room, shock settling in. "Sherry!"

The blonde rushed over and practically tackled me. "I've missed you so much!" she told me.

I hugged her back. "I've missed you too," I told her. "Gosh, you've gotten taller."

"'Morning birthday girl," Leon said to me, holding a bouquet of flowers that were already in a vase.

I smiled. "Good morning."

"I'm so happy that Mr. Simmons let me come! I feel terrible about the last time I saw you and…" she sniffled. "I'm just glad I get to see you again," she told me.

"Hey, I'm glad you're here too," I told her, giving her another hug, this time much shorter.

"Alright, Sherry, let Rebecca get dressed into real clothes," Leon said to her, walking over. "Let's see what we can make her for breakfast."

"Fine," she grumbled.

"Hold on, who said I wasn't going to just walk around in my robe and flannel pants? I didn't think I was going to go anywhere," I told them.

I saw Leon's cheeks blush bright red. "Uh, please, a shirt at least. I can see your, um, you know."

I laughed. "Alright, I'll be right back."

I went back into the bedroom, closing the door behind me. I untied my robe as I walked over to the closet.

I stood in front of it, letting out a sigh as I tried figuring out what to wear. Eventually, I ended up pulling out dark blue jeans, a pale blue lace edged camisole, and a hot pink long sleeved button up. I put on a necklace that had a cursive *R*, made from silver, on it that Billy and Tanya had gotten me for Christmas, and then went back out into the living room.

"Better?" I asked Leon, causing him to turn around.

"Much," he said with a smile as I came closer.

"Whatcha making?" I asked him, leaning forward slightly.

"Eggs, potatoes, and sausage," he told me.

I leaned on the counter, watching him do this. I knew that out of the corner of my eye, he was watching me too. During all of this, Sherry was watching cartoons on the TV.

We ate together, and it felt good not to be alone in the morning. Jack hadn't even been home since November, but Leon had been able to tell me that his team had been stateside a few times in between now and then, only to be shipped back out the next day.

"I'll clean up!" Sherry said happily, getting up and taking our plates from us. AS she went over to the sink, Leon flexed his hands, not meeting my gaze.

"Is something wrong?" I asked him, concerned.

"I have something to tell you," he told me. "I think we should go into the bedroom."

_Oh god._ "Alrighty then," I said as I got up. "C'mon."

I walked in first and he shut the door slowly. My heart was racing and as I stood there, I realized how scared I was. What was it that he'd refuse to tell me in front of Sherry?

"Wesker's alive."

Two words; four syllables; nine different letters; twelve letters in all.

And my heart skipped a beat.

"What?"

"Wesker's alive. It's a long story, but he's alive. I just thought you should know, in case he comes around."

"Why would he do that?" I asked him. There was no way _Leon_ could know about me and Wesker, right?

"He might try to eradicate everyone from S.T.A.R.S.. Or he's just a creep," he told me.

I felt like there was something else there, so I stayed where I was. "Is something else bothering you?"

He looked down. "Back in Raccoon City, I found something, and I guess I didn't know what it was back then-scratch that, I really didn't know what it was then-but when I was going through Wesker's desk at the office, I found a picture of you in a basketball uniform...It took me until right before we got to the 7 Eleven to figure out really who it was. On the back, it had said that he'd have to avoid you Saturday mornings."

I didn't say anything for a moment. "We had a friendship," I explained softly. "We lived together after some events transpired."

"Technical terms," Leon noted, eyebrow raised.

I shrugged. "Let's not ruin the day, alright?"

_He's alive…_

* * *

"Happy birthday!" was the first thing I heard as I walked into Stiletto. Piers was on one of the bar stool, Marissa was behind it, the chef was right outside of the kitchen, Tanya was by the storage room, and Billy was hugging me.

I smiled. "Thanks guys," I said to them, pulling a blank on any other words. The whole time we'd driven here I was thinking practically the same thing-_Wesker's alive and he's not talking to me. He really must not care about me._

"God, I can't believe you're only nineteen," Billy told me, his arm still around me.

"Sometimes I don't either," I told him.

"Becky, are you hungry?" Piers asked me, coming over. "We brought cake!"

"She _just_ had breakfast," Sherry told him, crossing her arms in that way teen-ish aged girls can.

Piers' currently happy mood skipped a beat as he shot a glare at her. "I'm sorry, I wasn't aware you were called Becky as well. Is your last name-"

Piers words were muffled by his mother putting her hand over his mouth. He looked up at her with a questioning look in his hazel eyes.

"Leon, is this your younger sister?" Tanya asked, coming over.

"No, this is Sherry Birkin," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders like a father would. Glancing at them, my eyes widened as I realized he was holding her in place. The blonde girl was still staring at Piers, who'd gone back to his bar stool. The ever present Gameboy was in front of him, put instead of playing it, he was reading a comic book.

"Hi Sherry, I'm Tanya O'Reilly," she said, holding out her hand. Sherry took it, a curious look on her face.

"Have we met?" she asked, her head cocked slightly.

"I don't think so. I'd remember such a pretty young girl," she told her.

_Right. Tanya couldn't know Sherry because how would she know a girl who lived in the Midwest? Let's not forget Mr. and Mrs. Birkin worked for Umbrella… Then again, I've discovered Sherry is rarely wrong…_

I forced myself to stop thinking and start talking to Billy. There hadn't been a lot of time in the past few months to just sit down and talk about something that wasn't work.

"Are you alright?" he asked me a half hour later. We'd somehow gotten to the topic of Massachusetts' fishing industry.

"I…" hesitated. "No, I'm not alright."

Billy frowned. "If you're worried about Jack, I'm sure he's fine. He's one of the best, ya know."

"It's not about Jack," I said softly. "It's about Wesker…"

Before I could say anymore, I heard someone cry out. I got up and turned around on instinct.

Sherry was on top of Piers, throttling him.

He was trying to grab her, but his air circulation was getting cut off and he…

He was suffocating.

"Sherry!" I yelled, rushing over and trying to pry her off of him When her grip turned out to be too tight, I started trying to pull her off, Leon assisting me. Somehow, we got her off of him and Billy was helping Piers get up. The nearly thirteen year old was taking deep breaths as we put space between the two by dragging a struggling Sherry away.

"What the hell!?" I screamed at her.

She looked down. "They're trying to take you away… To replace us…"

Leon was frowning, and then he sighed. He bent down to be eye level with her. "Nobody could ever replace you, Sherry. Is that the only reason you tackled Piers?"

"He said that Rebecca was with that other guy. Kraut or whatever. She can't be with him!"

I stared at Sherry. Was this really the same thing as last time? How she thought I was replacing her and Wesker?

_God dammit! Not everything is about him! It can't always be Wesker, Wesker, Wesker! He's not around, he doesn't matter. He's gone. He's alive, but he's gone. Not to mention a psycho. He's gone._

I didn't realize I was crying until I rushed into the bathroom to try to get some privacy. I went into one of the stalls and sat down, bringing my hands to my face and sobbing. "He...he doesn't care!"

I didn't know how long I stayed in there, but it was long enough for the door to open and somebody else come in.

"Leon and Sherry left," Tanya told me.

I sniffled. "I'm sorry."

"Hon, this was your birthday and it was Sherry that tackled Piers. You've got nothing to be sorry about."

"Is he alright?" I asked her as I got up and unlocked the stall door.

"Yeah. Marissa is going to go home with him though."

"God, she must hate me…" I muttered.

"She does not! Now come on, let's have some cake before the Nivans leave," she told me.

* * *

We ended up opening the bar since the 'party' ended early. I slapped a smile on my face, got the drinks, and prayed for this Saturday to end soon.

"You gonna be alright?" Billy asked me as we closed up the bar.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. You and Tanya go home," I told him.

He placed a friendly kiss on my forehead. "If that's what you want; see ya later Becky."

He and the redhead walked out a moment later, holding hands.

I sighed and rested my head against the bar. I wished I could wind back the clock to this morning and make it so that I'd never come to Stiletto with Sherry. I felt so bad about what happened with Piers…

The front door opened, the bells tinkling softly. I stood up and turned around. "I'm sorry, we're closed…"

Any other words died in my throat when I saw who was standing there.

"Happy birthday," he said calmly. He was wearing damn sunglasses even though it was one thirty in the morning.

"What are you doing here?! I'll call Leon if you come _any_ closer!" I told him.

"Are you scared of me?" Wesker purred as he came closer. "I come with no intent to harm."

He was less than a foot away from me now.

_I've got to be dreaming,_ I thought numbly.

He showed no sign of backing up, and I was pressed against the bar. So, in a brief moment of insanity, I leaned forward and grabbed the black frames and pulled them off.

I gasped as I saw the bright red eyes. The glasses dropped to the ground as I stared at him. "What did you...your…"

His eyes blinked. They didn't seem to be a part of him. They were foreign and horrible and where did his dark green eyes go!?

"Rebecca," he said my name with that certain tenderness that I'd only heard from him.

"Rebecca what? Rebecca, don't look at me like that? Rebecca, slit your own throat for me? Wesker, you're a monster! Get out!"

He came closer to me. "Shhh, don't be so loud."

It was all too real. "Why are you here?" I asked, my voice coming out in a squeak.

"It's been six months since your first mission," he told me.

_Has it really? It feels like last week I was getting settled into the apartment in Raccoon City..._ "Lovely. Thank you for reminding me," I said sarcastically to him.

He didn't move and I felt a ball of dread forming in my stomach.

"Do you remember our bargain?" he asked me, his breath right on my ear. I shuddered as I closed my eyes.

"The man I made that 'bargain' with is _dead_," I told him.

"You're wrong. I'm right here and I'm every bit of the man I was and more," he whispered.

Tears rolled down my cheeks. "Prove it then," I muttered. "Prove to me you haven't changed!"

He pulled away, and in those red eyes that looked like they belonged to a demon from hell, I thought I saw a flash of concern.

"Prove it," I said again.

Slowly, he bent his head down. His lips gently pressed against mine before his tongue against my bottom lip.

My heart was racing as I finally accepted that this was reality. My stomach was twisting and turning as I parted my lips slightly, right as Wesker put me on the bar. THe kiss continued on for several minutes and it was he who ended the kiss.

Our foreheads rested against each other's and I realized I was scared. I was scared that all of my old feelings for him would resurface and they would truly become something. I was scared that he would hurt me.

"Do you need more proof?" he asked.

I didn't say anything for a moment and then he wrapped his arms around me and picked me up. "Let me take you home," he said softly. "You can't drive like this."

I tried to laugh but it came out as sob. _It's convenient that my car isn't even here._

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Yes/No? Cute? Stupid? PLease tell me in a review!

On the other hand... Today is a very special day! Littlevamp's birthday! Thank you for reviewing so much! :)

And, on the tip of my nose, thank you to everyone who has read a chapter-I have over 4,000 views! It just means so much to me :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	31. Chapter 31

_**Wesker**_

She was silent as I drove to her apartment building. I didn't know what I was thinking when I went to the bar, but I had, and we were here now.

I got out and walked around the car-Henry's Firebird-and opened the door for her.

She refused to look at me as she got out, and I think she was going to try to simply go in, but I took her hand into mine. The action stilled her completely. I saw her body shudder once more, and I was dying for her to say something to me.

_Does she really see me as a monster? Is immortality truly just a mask for corruption?_

She turned back to me and pressed her face to my chest. "I thought you were dead. I thought...I thought that this was over...And then Leon told me you weren't dead and I felt betrayed; you never came. I stayed and you never came," she told me, crying.

I held her, fingers running through her hair. I wasn't going to make her feel worse by saying I was literally a few hours late.

"Let's get you inside," I whispered.

She pulled away, sniffing back and walked into the apartment building. I followed her, assuming that was alright. However, she turned around, hands on her hips, demeanor changed completely.

"Just go, Wesker, and be happy I don't call the cops for stalking me."

"I'm not stalking you," I growled.

"Are you here for a reason?" she asked me.

"Yes."

"Then tell me what it is so we can get this over with!" she told me, clearly frustrated.

I came closer, leaning over her again. "I want to spend the night with you, Rebecca."

"Well it's too bad I don't want to spend it with you," she snapped. With that, she slipped out from underneath me and walked into the elevator. Once again, I followed her. "Do you just not know when to quit Wesker!? I hate you!"

My lips crashed down over hers, effectively causing any other words to be cut off. We were rougher now than the kiss at the bar.

She moaned as I pulled away and I resisted from picking her up and holding her against the elevator wall. Instead, I chuckled. "Do you really hate me, Rebecca? Or is it something else?"

She looked down. "There's someone else," she told me as the elevator door opened. I followed her out and to her apartment door.

"Someone else?" I repeated, mildly surprised that she'd actually said something that alluded to there being another man. Did she mean that stupid SOCOM agent Krauser? Or was it the even more bothersome Kennedy?

"Yes," she said softly as she opened the door. ""And he's coming home in two days, so I'd appreciate it if you'd drop this and let us be."

I could see through her lie about Krauser. "If you cared about him, you would've walked out of the bar before I'd gotten the chance to kiss you," I told her.

She smacked me. "Just go away! What don't you get about the words I'm saying to you?! I want you to leave me alone!"

I stood there for a moment. "You said you missed me…"

"I also said I felt betrayed. Please just go."

"Rebecca…" I was trying so hard to...to not hurt her. Couldn't she tell how badly I wanted her? Shouldn't she be happy? Hadn't she wanted this?

She refused to even look at me.

I sighed. "Is there anything I could do to change your mind?"

"What do you want from me?! Sex for a night? At this rate, it'd be easier to just let you fuck me!"

I flinched. "You make it sound like you're an object."

"I feel like it sometimes," she muttered.

I hesitantly stepped towards her. I expected her to yell at me again, but it seemed as if she'd finally run out of energy to do so. I slowly touched her face, and then tucked hair behind her ear. The substance was soft to touch and I found myself tangling my fingers in it before leaning down to kiss her again.

I was met with no resistance as I took the kiss further, nor did I believe that I was openly wanted. But she was here, and she was accepting this… I reasoned with myself that it wasn't bad. That I wasn't bad.

I pulled away. "I want this to be your decision," I told her.

She shut her eyes. "I…I... I guess I want this..." she whispered.

My resolve was gone. I started undoing her shirt, slipping it off, my thumbs running down the inside of her arms…

And I stopped completely, taking her left arm into my hands. "What did you do to yourself?" I asked her, staring at the pale scar that adorned her arm.

"Not now. Please don't make me explain right now," she muttered. "Please don't stop…"

I hesitated, but in the end, didn't stop. I could always press for information later.

The next thing to go was her jeans, and then her undershirt. She shuddered, leaning into me every time I prolonged a touch on her, usually muttering something about how cold she was.

Instead of making her completely nude, I took off my jacket, pushed down my pants, undid my shirt, and then pulled her in for another kiss. I was about to push her down on the couch when she slipped away and went towards the bedroom.

I didn't question it.

She was in the process of trying to get her bra off, but instead I walked behind her and unclipped it, pushing it off her shoulders and letting it fall to the floor.

"Now would be the time to stop me," I whispered into her ear as my thumbs hooked under her underwear.

"The time to stop you was when you walked into the bar," she muttered, "now it's much too late."

I chuckled before kissing her again. She groaned and whimpered as I picked her off the floor right before I laid her down on the bed, leaning over her.

As I pulled away, her eyes were still shut. She slowly opened them, exposing those green eyes. "Wesker…"

My fingertips trailed up her thigh, causing her to shudder again.

"Please…" she whispered.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Yes, I know, obscenely short. *Sighs* but, they finally slept together, so that's good, eh? So... more voting! Who thinks he'll leave before she wakes up? Or somebody comes in/knocks on the door/etc.?

But, due to this being so short, I'll be reminiscent! When I first started writing this, about two months ago, on my iPod, the story was that Wesker visited Rebecca at her apartment and she was asleep after partying (taking the route of being an under aged alcoholic) and she woke up and flipped out on him. He'd made her breakfast which led to a flashback of him taking her to the diner back in Raccoon City. There was never supposed to be any bonding with Sherry or an abusive father, or any real relationship between Rebecca and Wesker, besides him creepily going into her apartment. And it wasn't supposed to be this long at all.

But hey, it is! So y'all are happy bout that, right? Please, express your happiness is a wonderful review! ;)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	32. Chapter 32

**_Rebecca_**

When I woke up, I was flush against another warm body. My eyes snapped open as last night came rushing back. _Oh god, I didn't...I did, didn't I?_

_I slept with Wesker._

My body ached, but in a good kind of way. I snuggled closer against the blond, wondering if he'd want more. _Could I even do more? God, but hadn't it felt so good?_

Warm lips brushed against my forehead and I shuddered from the feeling it brought me. His fingertips drifted down my body before resting on my hip. I leaned into him, sighing from the attention.

"Are you alright?" he asked me, finally breaking the silence.

"Yep." I buried my head into his chest, loving this. If this could be what the rest of my life was like, and nothing else-no outside world, no worrying about this and that-I would love it.

I brought my right hand up to Wesker's jaw, slowly tracing it. He closed his eyes as he brought me even closer.

I stopped to kiss him softly. Before I knew it, he had me on top of him, and we were kissing each other until we were absolutely out of breath. We were about to start again-I swear, God only knows why I'm addicted to Wesker-when somebody started knocking on the door.

I froze. I stayed as quiet as snow falling, barely wanting to breathe.

There was more knocking on the door. "Damn it, I know you're in there!" some unfamiliar voice said.

Wesker sighed as he gently lifted me off of him. He got up and slid on his pants, not bothering with his shirt. He walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

I got up, grabbing my robe. Who they Hell did he think he was, shutting my own bedroom door? How _dare_ he?

I cracked the door open, watching as Wesker opened the apartment door. "What?" he all but growled.

"Tch, keep yourself together Albert. It's not attractive to see you melting because of a barely legal girl," a dark haired man said as he came in.

"I'm not melting," he shot back.

"Right, and I'm the Duke of Cornwall," the other man said.

"Alex, could you please just shut up and tell me what you want?" Wesker asked him.

"There's been some complications. I know you wanted to be leisurely here, but I'm afraid that won't be possible. Senor Hidalgo doesn't enjoy being kept waiting and we are making him wait," the man explained.

Wesker sighed. "Fine. I'll be back soon."

"Soon as in a half hour, three hours, tonight?..."

"Soon."

Alex slumped his shoulders. "Alright then. See you."

Upon seeing the stranger leaving, I stood up and as quietly as I could, slipped back to the bed. Wesker came in, shutting the door once again. He came over to the bed and leaned down to kiss me.

A sound escaped me as he gently pushed me down, getting over me much like he had last night. I thought he'd want to go farther, to do it all again…

But he pulled away. "As you know, I have to go," he told me.

I sighed and sat up. "I guess you're not going to tell me anything?"

He started putting his shirt on. "Unfortunately for you, that is the case. I like to keep my personal and professional separate."

I almost laughed but decided on staying silent as I watched him great dressed. "So, what are we?" I asked him when he was done.

For a moment, he stared at me. I could tell he was thinking about his answer and that made me uneasy. Suddenly, all of my fears reared up in my stomach and I wanted to curl up in a ball instead of confronting this.

"We're something," he said simply before sitting next to me on the bed. I hesitantly leaned against him; his arm wrapped me, keeping me warm. "Together," he added softly. "I can understand if you wanted a...relationship...with someone else, but…"

I smiled against him. "But?" I teased lightly.

He kissed my forehead. "This is your life," he told me. "I don't expect you to want to be with me."

I bit my lower lip. "Wesker...I…"

"I have to go. Hopefully I'll be able to see you again soon," he explained.

I nodded as he went to walk out.

"Oh, and Rebecca?"

"Hm?"

"I hope you liked your birthday present," he told me as he walked out.

I blushed heavily as I stayed on the bed, drawing my knees to my chin and staying like that for a while. _I can't believe that just happened… I can't believe I saw him and he didn't kill me… That he treated me so… so gently._

I shifted and sighed, lying on my side and shut my eyes to go to sleep again.

* * *

The next day, I walked into the airport terminal that Krauser's SOCOM team was supposed to arrive at some time today.

I swallowed as I saw group of people, mainly women, sitting down and chatting away like close friends. I thought about that for somewhere and I realized that they were, more than likely, close friends. They probably all had significant others on the SOCOM team.

"Are you new?" an older man asked me, causing me to jump.

"Uh, yeah, you could say that."

"Who are you here for?" he asked me, putting his hands into his pockets.

"Jack Krauser," I blurted out. "And you?"

He smiled. "It seems we have something in common. How do you know him?"

_Uh…_ "I'm actually living with him," I admitted, kind of embarrassed. "H-How do you know him?"

"I've known him since he was a kid," the man answered simply. "I'm Garret."

"Rebecca," I said, holding my hand out. The old man put his hand out and shook mine my hand firmly.

Before I could say anything else, the glass doors opened and the SOCOM team back. Krauser saw me and stopped short, prompting me to go over to him.

"Hi," I said to him. "How are you?"

He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me close. "I'm fine now," he told me.

I shut my eyes against his chest, feeling horrible on the inside. I reminded myself that I wasn't dating Krauser, that what I'd done last night with Wesker wasn't wrong...

"Let's go grab some lunch," he suggested. "As a late birthday celebration."

I smiled. "Sounds good." I looked over my shoulder to say goodbye to Garret, but he wasn't there anymore.

Krauser put his arm around my shoulder as we walked out to the Camino.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I apologize that this is so god damned short, but, It sorta plants the seed for an internal conflict for Rebecca. If you squint.

*chuckles* Can anyone guess who the 'complications' are about (and yes, this one is actually in the games) ?

So, in the next chapter it'll be from Leon's POV for next to no reason at all!

Hope you liked it and please review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	33. Chapter 33

_**Leon**_

"Claire," I said, making the auburn haired girl stop mid-rant.

"What?"

I looked down at the table and sighed. "Maybe we could talk about someone other than Chris?" I asked her.

She rested her chin on her hand. "Fine. Who would you like to talk about then?"

I looked around Stiletto. I knew I didn't want to talk about Sherry-I hadn't even told Claire what had happened at Rebecca's birthday celebration nearly two weeks ago. I didn't really want to talk about anyone, I realized as I thought about it. But I knew Claire was going to burst if she didn't talk to anyone about what happened right before New Year's.

"Steve?" I suggested.

She looked at me, brown eyes like daggers. I met them steadily.

"Why? What's so important-"

"He saved your life, didn't he? And didn't he die in your arms?"

She flinched. "Look, anyone else. Even that psycho Wesker, alright?"

I drummed my fingers on the table, weighing the options of this conversations in my head. As I was doing this, Rebecca came in, the bells on the door jingling as she did so.

"Hey," I said to her, causing her to stop and turn to us.

"Oh, hi Leon. And you must be Claire," she said, a smile on her face. "I'm Rebecca Chambers," she told her as she held her hand out.

My friend raised her eyebrow. "As in Bravo team medic Rebecca Chambers…"

The hand dropped. "Can I get you two anything?" she asked us.

I tilted my full tea cup, smiling. "I'm alright right now. What about you, Claire?"

"I'm fine," she said in an uncharacteristic monotone.

As Rebecca went into the back, the other girl sighed. "How can you be friends with her?" she asked me.

I flexed my fingers. "If it weren't for her, the U.S. government wouldn't have ever found us and we would've stayed in a 7 Eleven until we died, me rather quickly considering my bullet wound was getting infected. Excuse me for befriending her afterwards; it was the least I could do."

"If it weren't for her, Sherry wouldn't be in government custody, and you wouldn't be an agent," she reminded me.

Rebecca came out of the storage room, smiling as she went over to Marissa and Piers, oblivious to the hatred that Claire seemed to be harboring towards her.

I looked back over to her. "She's been through just as much as we have and she did it when she was only eighteen," I countered. "She was a _S.T.A.R.S._ member who also lived with Wesker. She was just as hurt as your brother after the Arklay incident."

She rolled her hands. "And then she crawled right back to that house. Leon, she's a wimp. She's not even helping Chris, Jill, and Barry. She's hiding from what happened."

_I wouldn't call being here with Billy and friends with me hiding, but whatever._ "If you don't like her, there's the door, Claire. She's been here a heck of a lot more than you have."

She went wide-eyed. "Leon, who the hell was there for you during Raccoon City? _She_ was _here_."

A 'phantom' shot of pain went through my shoulder. I winced but refused to dignify her with a response. I brought my right hand up and ran it through my hair. I moved it down and looked at my wrist watch. "Lunch is over, I gotta go. Don't bother calling me later," I told her as I got up. "Bye," I said to Becky, who was looking at me. She smiled and waved.

"Bye Leon!" Piers said to me, looking up from his math work. I waved to the kid before I walked out.

"Alex, c'mon!" a brunette said to who I assumed was her older brother. She was looking behind her and before I could move out of her way, she walked right into me. The sudden force caused me to fall back and she landed on top of me.

She was looking at me now, and I found myself just staring at her.

"Thanks for breaking my fall," she told me, her face inches from mine. I hadn't been this close to a girl in a while, if you exclude my drunken times at Rebecca's.

"Anytime," I said to her, smiling.

"Gabbie," her brother said as he pulled him off of me. "Please apologize to the very understanding man."

"Sorry," she told me as she blushed.

"It's fine."

Alex rolled his eyes. "I'll be inside. Come in when you're done flirting."

Her blush deepened. "Really, really sorry. He's just a dick all of the time."

I laughed. "I understand. Have you two been to Stiletto before?"

She shook her head. "We just got here a few nights ago," she explained as she slid her hands into her jean pockets.

"Tell the waitresses you're friends with Leon," I said to her. I checked my wristwatch; I was going to be late if I didn't start moving. "Nice to have broken your fall for you, Gabbie."

She pulled a card out of her pocket and handed it to me. "Nice meeting you, Leon."

I walked away without another word, rushing to my car. As I sat down, I realized it was starting to snow. I sighed as I knew it would be a full blown snow storm by the time my work/training was done tonight.

"Fuck it," I muttered under my breath.

I made it to the offices in record time, and I rushed up the icy stairs as I held onto the railing. Last thing I needed was to break a leg.

I went to the supervisor to sign in, but I was surprised to see she was occupied by a man that was around Krauser's height, but a lot leaner. His back was to me and all I could see was messy copper hair, a black leather jacket, and worn jeans.

"Lady, I'm telling you I have no idea where I'm supposed to go," he told her. By the tone of his voice, I could tell he was losing patience. Quickly.

"Maybe I could help," I offered as I popped in behind him, walking around the tall man. I shot a quick smile to the supervisor.

"Leon, I don't think-"

"I know the layout," I said, cutting her off. "What are you looking for?"

"SOCOM," he told me.

_No way...Would they really hire him? He looks like a damn mercenary... But maybe that's why?_ "Are you sure you're in the right building?"

"It's the address they gave me," he said coolly.

I met his eyes and I realized that he had the bluest eyes I'd ever seen; pretty much neon.

"Can I use your phone?" I asked the supervisor. She nodded and I picked up the phone and dialed the number of Krauser and Rebecca's apartment, knowing the former was still home.

"Hello?" he sounded like he had just gotten up.

"Hey, it's Leon. There's a new guy for SOCOM here…"

"Fuck, seriously? I completely forgot. Just give me fifteen minutes, alright?"

"Yeah, I'm sure it'll be fine. See you soon." I put the phone down. "I'm assuming you've talked to Jack Krauser?"

The stranger nodded. "Thanks man."

I shrugged. "Kinda my job," I told him as I walked out.

He laughed. "So you're a secretary?"

"No, agent in training."

"I kinda remember what that was like," he told me. "Running around before the mission that proved your worth. God, it sucked."

I nodded. _Prove my worth? I proved my worth back when I got out of Raccoon City alive._

"I'm Henry, by the way," he told me, extending his hand.

"Leon," I said, taking his hand.

"So serious for someone who looks fresh out of the academy. Something happened to get you here, didn't it?"

"You could say that."

"So what do you do? Spec ops?"

"D.S.O.."

The door opened and Krauser came in, along with flakes of snow. "Sorry. Alarm didn't go off and Becky was being too kind."

"As usual," I chipped in.

He smiled at me. "Yeah. So, you must be Henry, right?"

"Yeah, that's me," the 'stranger' said.

"I'm Jack Krauser," the blond told him.

Knowing I had no business with USSOCOM, I pocketed my hands and walked away to the stairs. My head was starting to pound as I walked up, my boots making _thunk_ sounds.

I walked up to the top of the building, but I didn't go out in the snow. I sat down on the top step and rested my head in my heads, trying to alleviate the pain, but thinking made it worse. I hated this feeling, but there was no medicine that worked, and I'd literally tried everything over the past few months.

"There you are," I heard Krauser say. His deep voice seemed to echo in my brain and I groaned softly, burying my head farther into my hands and arms. "Do you need to go to the doctor? You're not looking too well."

"No," I said hoarsely. "How'd things with Henry go?"

"Good. He left a half hour ago after an hour long interview," he told me.

"Crap, have I really been up here that long?" I asked.

"Yeah, you have. People were starting to panic when they realized they couldn't find you."

"Sorry," I said, feeling miserable.

"Come on," he extended his hand and I let him basically pull me up. I whimpered as we walked down the stairs as the blood pounded through me, pain shooting up everywhere, especially in my aching shoulder. "That's it, I'm taking you home," he told me.

* * *

"Nice place," Krauser told me as he opened the door. I walked underneath his arm, my hands in my pockets.

"I guess."

It had less decorations than his apartment-none, in fact-, but then again, his probably hadn't looked like that before Becky had moved in.

"Feel free to go home," I told him.

"Nah, I'm alright. Becky won't be off until one, so we have eight hours to use for catching up."

I raised an eyebrow. "What is there to tell you? Training and paperwork. Sometimes I get to see Sherry."

"So, no girlfriend yet?"

"I'd rather not traumatize anyone else," I explained to him as I went into the kitchen. My jacket had been abandoned somewhere along the way, so I was only wearing a sweater. "Did Becky put you to this?"

"No."

I sighed. "Krauser…"

"I know you don't want to talk about Raccoon. I get it; I have skeletons in my closet, too. But it's not good to keep everything so cooped up."

I folded my arms. "I'm not. I happen to tell my miseries to a bottle of rum on a weekly basis. And before you say anything else, Becky let me crash on your couch."

"That's not good either," he told me.

"Yeah, I know it's your couch and all, but it's so cushiony and big! Don't get a couch if you don't want it to be used."

"That's not what I meant."

I rolled my eyes before turning around again and going over to the fridge. "Want a beer? I got plenty."

"I'm good."

_Why does he remind me of a parent? I wonder what he would do if he had kids..._

"Leon, this is your life. If you ever want to talk, you know where to find me when I'm stateside. I don't want you self-destructing."

"It's a little late for that," I muttered under my breath.

He shook his head. "See ya later Leon. Hope you can find your fix."

I flinched at the words. I watched him walk out, and then looked down at the bottle of beer in my hand. Anger shot through me, and before I could stop myself, I threw the bottle at the wall.

"Fuck my life," I said as I sank down on the floor.

I shut my eyes and tilted my head against the counters.

_Self destruction sequence commence._

* * *

**_Author's _**_**Note: **_Just a look inside Leon's life. Also, if you didn't know it yet, I don't really like Claire. Hence the reason why she's kind of a bitch.

And Henry met Leon *sigh*

And, just to let you know, Gabbie actually is Alex's sister (in the story). More than likely she'll be in later chapters.

Hope ya'll enjoyed this completely out of place chapter, please review, PM me, etc :)

~_HolleringHawk65_


	34. Chapter 34

**_Wesker_**

"You two will be the death of me," I muttered under my breath as I wrote on my clipboard.

Gabbie giggled. She was dressed worse than Jill-a tight dark pink camisole that showed off a belly button piercing, ripped blue denim short shorts, and a clearly visible violet lace bra-and was sitting on top of my desk. She was younger than Alex-I think she was around Henry's age, but I wasn't entirely sure the exact number-and he allowed her to get away with pretty much anything.

"Gabbie, how many times to I have to tell you to leave Albert alone?" her brother asked her.

She sighed. "He's never told me to leave."

"If she's annoying you, I can take her away," he told me.

"No, it's fine right now."

"How's the project going?" Alex asked me, looking over at the oversized glass tube.

I glanced at Steve, almost feeling guilty. _Stop it. You've never felt bad before. This is all because of Rebecca, isn't it? You can't let her get under your skin and affect your work. Work __**has **__to come before relationships._

"Fine. Hidalgo will have the Veronica virus samples soon enough," I told Alex.

"I have to admit, doing this feels wrong," Alex told me. "I know we need the money, but that doesn't make it anymore right. This kid was _dead_, but now…"

"Not so much," Gabbie finished for us. "You two are feeling these little emotions called remorse and guilt. Honestly, Albert, I'm surprised you didn't start cracking after Raccoon City. I guess being with Rebecca is actually good for you. And, Alex, it's Albert that's triggering your emotions. I'm assuming it's memories with the other Weskers are being brought up to the surface and it makes you wishy-washy."

"Such adequate words for a Psychology major," Alex said dryly. I stayed silent as I finished up the sum of my report and put the clipboard down.

"Why do you believe emotions are good?" I asked Gabbie. The younger girl glanced up at me from her book.

"Why wouldn't they be good?"

"Weakness is an emotion," I reminded her.

She shook her head. "Weakness is a personality trait."

The door opened, causing bright light to shine into the blue lighted room.

I glanced up and saw Henry in the doorway. He was staring at Steve, but then he looked over at me.

"I got the job," he told me. "And I met Krauser."

I was over to the door in a heartbeat. "What is he like?"

"Think you if you'd been a soldier. And a more predominant sense of humor."

I rolled my eyes. "Did he talk about Rebecca?"

"A few times, actually. He mentioned her when he first came in, then he talked about how she was working at Stiletto and that they lived together, oh, and how he was surprising her tomorrow morning. He seems like an all around nice guy."

"Surprising her? With what?" I restrained from adding 'she's _mine_.'

"Breakfast! Darling, it's _so_ scandalous," Henry said, his voice in a mocking tone.

"Well you suck," I told him.

His cheeks reddened. "Just shut up."

"When do you start?"

"The unit ships out on the eighth of February," he told me.

"Before Valentine's Day? That's a shame…"

He laughed. "Yeah. Right. I know you love that you'll be able to have Rebecca all to yourself."

"She's not an object," I reminded him.

"I know that a helluva a lot better than you do. Now, if you'd excuse me, I'm tired. Good night."

"Good night Henry," I told him as he went upstairs.

* * *

The next night I had the Veronica infectee on a table, drawing his blood out. I kept an eye on the machines, careful to make sure he wasn't getting up too soon. I heard Alex's soft footsteps behind me and I knew he was watching me. I also knew that he thought that I would be a major screw-up after my new virus.

"Do you think Gabbie is right?" he asked me.

I looked over at him after setting the third vial into the cushioned case. "That we feel remorse and guilt? Yes. About her saying there are aliens on the moon? No."

The dark haired man leaned against the wall as I extracted the fourth and fifth vials. After that, I deemed the number of Veronica samples adequate and closed the case.

"Do you miss William Birkin?"

I looked up at Alex. "Why would you ask me that?"

"I don't know. You rarely smile anymore. I remember when he used to make you smile."

"He was annoying me and I was envisioning bludgeoning him with a chair," I said, lying to Alex. To admit that I missed that pester of a man felt degrading. It made me feel _weak._

He sat down on the floor, watching as I hooked Steve back up to the tubes filled with chemicals that would keep him sedated, and then putting him back into the glass chamber. Even though he was thirty-two, he seemed like an unknowing child as he continued watching me walk back and forth in the lab.

He rested his chin on his right knee, keeping his left leg straight. With his dark clothing, he would've blended in with the shadows had it not been for the blue lights throughout the room.

"It's not good to lie, even if you've been doing it for a couple of years," he told me.

I rolled my eyes. "Are you going to sulk here all night?"

"Probably not. Just until Gabbie comes looking for me after she comes back from Stiletto."

"Why is she there?" I asked, shocked.

"She's trying to see that stupid Leon guy again. She can do so much better than him."

"He did make it through Raccoon City," I reminded him. I was given a dark look that included narrow eyes and the implied _You're not helping at all._

I sighed as I walked out, not caring to indulge Alex any further. A haggard looking Henry was walking down the hall. As I passed him, he grabbed my arm.

"Have you seen Alex? I need to talk to him."

"The lab," I told him. His eyes went wide and his skin paled a bit. He let go of me and rushed down the hall.

I was too used to all of their drama that I didn't really care. Instead, I went upstairs to my study/library/sleeping area. Unlike my old home, this one lacked pictures of Sherry, and instead had diagrams, as well as flora specimens. _Like_ my old home, it had white walls, dark wood flooring, and dark brown furniture.

I laid down on my bed after getting into a pair of pajama pants, completely and utterly exhausted. But, it was a relief to have to not worry about Steve anymore. The samples were taken, and someone would ship them tomorrow.

I rolled onto my side, imagining what it would be like to have Rebecca in my bed every night. I shut my eyes as I imagined her thin fingers on me, tracing little nothings, or just having them there. I sighed again, realizing that I wanted that. That I missed her.

I smirked before I let myself fall asleep. She'd never know. She'd never need to know the extent of my feelings for her.

* * *

I lurched forward as I felt the coldness hit me square in the back. I looked over my shoulder and I saw Gabbie armed with snowballs, a ridiculous look on her semi-tan features.

"What-"

I was promptly cut off by a snowball to the face. I growled, dropped the bowl into the sink, and went over to Gabbie, tackling her before she could move back. Snow covered hands tried to swat me away, but I was persistent. The two of us rolled around the deck, effectively covering both of us in snow.

She finally pushed hard enough that I let her go, and the two of us were found still panting fifteen minutes later by Henry.

"Should I ask?" he said, an eyebrow raised.

Gabbie giggled as she sat up. "I sneak attacked Wesker."

"Why would you ever do that?"

She shrugged. "I'll explain it to you later."

I stared at her. "No you will not. Tell me why you even considered doing that."

"Well…" she sighed and got up with Henry's aid. "I figured that since we were all living together I might as well try to have some fun."

We both looked at her, not believing. She, of all people, should know that the two of us could snap at any moment. She was a brilliant young woman, and she should be able to realize that. But, where her brother excelled, she lacked-she sometimes seemed to be oblivious in what went on around her; it was what Henry and I referred to as child-attitude.

We should be used to it by now.

"Liar," Henry said before I could.

The girl shrugged. "Whatever. Caoi!" she said to us, walking into the house, snow coming off of her with every step.

"You Weskers," Henry said to me, a sigh leaving his lips afterwards.

"Like your family is much better," I told him as I walked in and back to the sink. I put the bowl into the dishwasher and then turned around to see Henry checking his nails. He glanced up at me for a moment, and I realized that there was something he wanted to tell me.

"Is everything alright?" I began cautiously.

"You know that guy, Leon?"

"I have heard of him, yes," I told him. "What does he have to do with us?"

"He got put in the hospital and Gabbie has been visiting him every day," Henry told me.

"How do you know this?" I asked him.

"I've been hanging at around Stiletto, talking to Krauser and co.. Getting into this fake persona," he explained to me.

"Fake," I repeated under my breath. "Have you talked to Rebecca?"

"A little."

I flexed my hands. "How is she?"

"Not busy caring about you, for sure," he told me.

"Fine, be like this. I have work to do."

"_Right_. How's 'fixing' Steve going?" he asked me.

"Fixing…" I repeated slowly. "I would not really considering it 'fixing,' simply 'prolonging.' It may not even work."

Henry shrugged. "It will, I'm sure. Maybe it won't be exactly what you desired, but he'll be alright for a while."

I let that soak in. "If it's not what I desired, then it didn't actually work," I explained to him.

"Dear god, accept me praising you, oh Lord Albert of Science," he said, and then rolled his eyes.

"Why are you flirting with Albert?" Alex asked, coming over and wrapping his arms around Henry's waist.

"I'm not flirting," he said, blushing. But he was being truthful, that much I knew. "That's kind of gross that you would even suggest that."

"Thanks Henry," I said drily. "Love you too."

"Oh, come on! You know what I mean," the spec ops agent said, blushing more as Alex slowly tightened his grip on him. "You're more of my father than anything else."

"And you're like my son. Alex, please don't rip him apart," I said as I begun walking away from the two.

"Do I ever?" I heard Alex mutter.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Yes, I did just put Alex and Henry together. Hate me or not, I usually don't care. I just thought it would be cute.

The next chapter will skip to February sixth, and have more cute Krauser and Rebecca (hopefully) and some cute little things for Leon & Gabbie. Because even the youngest of Weskers deserve happiness.

Hope this chapter made sense, that you like it, and please review!

Oh, and I'm not quite sure how posting on Friday and Sunday is gonna go; I'm not gonna be home, wi-fi sucks where I'm going, and I'll be 'running' around with my family :( Just how I want to spend my weekend :/

~_HolleringHawk65_


	35. Chapter 35

**_Rebecca_**

"Oh…"

"Is it alright?" Krauser asked me.

Billy and Tanya had let me off of work early and I'd gone home with Krauser because he was living again for two days and he had no idea (yet again) when he'd be back. We were closer now than before, and I was caught between loving that and hating myself because of what I had with Wesker.

But, right now, I told myself not to think about Wesker because Krauser had set up a dinner, presumably romantic, and it was…

"Beautiful," I said, smiling. "This is wonderful."

"It's good that I can do something right outside of missions," he told me.

I opened my mouth to protest, wanting to remind him that he'd saved my life, not to mention pulled every string he could to help me get Sherry and Leon, but he was already moving over to the oven. Knowing he wouldn't let me do anything, I went over to the island and sat on one of the stools, watching him as he went about the kitchen.

"I'd offer you wine, but…"

I raised my eyebrows. "But I'm only nineteen?"

"Yeah," he smirked. "I always forget that."

_Sometimes I do, too,_ I thought to myself. "Lemme guess; sparkling cider?" I asked him, still happy. I didn't need alcohol to have a good night.

"Yeah," he admitted, a red tinge to his cheeks, but I didn't mind. This kind of humility was sweet. It was human.

He brought over a plate of piping hot stew. I smiled even more as he sat down across for me.

"How's work going?" he asked me.

"It's good. Busy," I told him. "How did the paperwork go?"

"First off, there was way too much," he told me. "Secondly, they left most of it to me, so there really was too much. But it's over, so I guess there wasn't too much."

I sighed as I leaned forward. "Paperwork sucks," I said to him, remembering all of the papers at the old office.

He leaned towards me, leaving only a few inches of space between us. My heart started racing as he cupped my face and he closed the gap.

I pulled away almost as soon as his lips touched mine. My reaction caused me to fall off of my stool. "I-I-I can't," I told him, tears starting to roll down. "I can't, Jack, I'm so sorry."

Before he could say anything, or I could make it even more awkward, I rushed into the bedroom. I pulled out a bag and stuffed in clothes and soap. I grabbed my jacket and then I put my shoes on. Krauser was still sitting on the stool, and haven't said anything.

"I'm just going to go stay at Leon's for a few days," I told him, though I didn't expect an answer. "I'll see you when you get back."

"See you," he said softly as I walked out.

_Stupid S.T.A.R.S.. Stupid Wesker… He __**knew**__ I wouldn't be able to...to be with anyone else. Stupid, stupid, stupid… I need to learn how to say no._

I jammed my fists in my jacket pockets and started walking towards Leon's apartment. I wasn't going to just take Krauser's Camino...It was his, not mine. The apartment was his… The bar was Tanya and Billy's… Hell, the only things I actually owned were a backpack, duffel bag, a Gameboy (with Pokemon Blue), clothes, and shoes. I could just hop on a bus since there was nothing actually tying me down.

By the time I'd walk to Leon's in the bitter cold, I was steadily crying, sniffling, and trying to not completely break down.

I knocked on his door, and it took him a few minutes to answer the door. "Hey," he said, his voice kind of raspy.

I noted that he had his arm in a brace, and as he stepped back to let me in, he still had a slight limp.

"Hi," I said weakly, wiping my eyes. "How are you?"

"Between Marissa's doting and Gabbie's daily visits, I'm fine."

I smiled. Mrs. Nivans had been one of the kindest people to all of us. She was constantly bringing in cookies and brownies, occasionally even cupcakes. Aside from sweetening us up, she was sure to make sure we were getting what we needed when any of us were sick. I think she did that because Piers always seemed rather distant, like he didn't need anyone to help him.

But, that aside, one could imagine her reaction when she found out Leon had been in a car accident-she was at the hospital with lemon bars and a thermos of hot tea in under an hour.

Her 'doting' was clearly evident as brownie crumbs could be seen on a plant, as well as a few tupperware containers that had assorted goodies.

Of course, the amount that was left also showed that there was somebody else here occasionally. Leon had a rapidly declining appetite, which meant that Gabbie probably had a sweet tooth. I'd only met her a two or three times, the first in brief passing when she came to Stiletto with Alex, who was apparently her brother.

"Hungry?" Leon asked me, gesturing to all of the food around the kitchen.

"No, I just ate," I told him, even though it had actually been close to an hour since I'd had the brief meal.

"What's wrong?" he asked me as he went over to his couch. He practically collapsed as he sat down on it, closing his eyes as his weight was taking off his feet.

"I...Krauser sort of kissed me," I told him. I was starting to play with my fingers as I sat on the floor; the tips of my right pointer and middle fingertips were pressing into the palm of my left hand before wrapping around my other fingers.

"Sort of?"

"I guess...I mean, I pulled away from him."

"So this other guy is really getting under your skin," Leon assumed.

"Yeah, you could say that," I told him before bringing my left knee up to my chin.

I had briefly skirted the topic that I'd been with someone else, telling Leon it was a one night stand that had the small potential to become something else. If that made sense. Of course, I hadn't told him that the 'other guy' was Albert Wesker. God, I could already see him freaking out over it. He was protective of me like some brothers were of their sisters.

"Are you alright?" he asked me.

"Not really…" I told him.

He sat up and looked at me. "Becky, I don't want to lose you like I've lost Sherry. I'm here. You can talk to me."

I flinched at the mention of Sherry. I hadn't talked to her in a month because Simmons seemed to have her under lock and key-the guy was a complete freak, but it was as if nobody but Leon and I noticed it.

"I haven't seen him since that night," I admitted softly, meeting Leon's gaze. "I thought...I thought that maybe he actually _did_ care, but I don't think he does. I don't know why I ever thought that. It was so fucking stupid of me to think that he cared."

Leon looked concerned. "Becky, this guy… He shouldn't be your sun. You've got so much potential, and you're great-if he doesn't know that, then he should go rot in an isolated corner of the world."

I chuckled lightly. "Easier said than done," I said as a few drops of water trickled down my cheeks.

"C'mon, come here," he said, patting the couch.

I slowly got up and sat down next to him. He coaxed me into leaning against him, and he fingered my hair. "Really, it's gonna be alright. I promise you. You just have to remember it gets worse before it gets better."

I briefly wondered who had told him that. Probably Gabbie, because no one else would ever think to say that to Leon. To us, he seemed too broken to even try to save sometimes-he _had_ walked in front of a car. But he was part of our haphazardly brought together 'family' anyway.

"It's already been so, so bad though," I whispered against him.

I closed my eyes, my mind wandering to last July. I shuddered and pressed a little bit more into him.

There was a knock on the door and Leon sighed. He pulled away from me and got off of the couch, limping over to the door. He opened and Krauser was standing there.

Leon stepped aside and Krauser came over to me. I was almost afraid he would start yelling at me, but he didn't. He just stared at me.

"Becky, you don't need to move out," he told me.

I sat up. "Krauser, it was never supposed to be a permanent thing," I reminded him.

He kneeled down in front of me, taking my hands into his. "Please."

I looked at him, heart hammering in my chest. _What the hell was I ever thinking?_

I glanced over at Leon. He shrugged as he met my gaze and then he 'hobbled' over to the counters in the kitchen, out of sight.

I looked back to the blond in front of me. It felt like I was cheating on Wesker as the words came out if my mouth, even though I hadn't seen him since that morning last month.

"Ok, I-I'll come back," I said softly.

He smiled. It was different then any smile I'd seen on Wesker's face; Krauser was genuinely happy. In fact, he hugged me to him, bringing me off of the couch. I heard Leon chuckle and I sighed against Jack's chest. I wriggled my arms out from underneath my body to hug him back.

"Thank you," he whispered into my hair.

I blinked, crying yet again. "I'm sorry... I... I shouldn't have left."

"It's alright," he told me.

We just stood there, in the middle of Leon's living room, six days into February. He'd be gone in two, and then who knows when they'd be back again...

I found myself perpetually afraid of losing him, but at the same time, he wasn't quite mine to lose. I lifted my head slightly and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. At the touch, his cheeks turned bright red, but he didn't say anything.

"Let's go home," I told him.

He smiled at me. "Gladly."

As the two of us walked out, I glanced over at Leon. A sheepish smile was on his face as he waved his hand, ushering us to leave.

* * *

In the morning, I finally was able to make Krauser breakfast, instead of the other way around. Around eight, I felt his strong arms wrap around my waist in a loose hug. "Good morning," he said, his deep voice seeming to vibrate through me. I smiled and leaned against him gently. Last night, like usual, we talked until we both had to go to sleep.

And now, we were just doing this, whatever this actually was.

After we finished breakfast and cleaned up from it, I sat down on the stool across from his. I swallowed saliva that had gathered in my mouth, and slowly stretched my hand out, taking his into mine.

"Can you promise me something?" I asked him.

His blue eyes looked over to me, concern flashing in his eyes more than the time Gabbie had walked into Stiletto looking disheveled after apparently a night out to find Henry having lunch with Krauser.

"Of course," he said after a moment.

"Can you do your best to stay safe?" I asked him, water pricking at the corner of my eyes. _God, what is wrong with me? I'm so weak..._ "I can't lose you, too," I said, my throat feeling like it was closing up. Was this what it had been like for Sherry; to recognize that there was only one thing keeping you grounded, and that one thing could be taken from you at any moment? Sure, I had the other workers at Stiletto-Billy, Tanya, Marissa, the chef, and, by extension, Piers-not to mention Leon, but Krauser was... He was that rock during the storm that you clung to.

"Becky..." he said softly. "Of course," he added with a small smile. He squeezed my hand reassuringly before bringing his free hand up to my cheek and wiping away the little drops of moisture.

* * *

"Hi Rebecca," Henry said to me, messing with the strap of his pack. He looked more serious than anyone else, but I didn't comment on that.

Instead:

"Hey Henry, how are you?"

He chuckled. "Relaxed, surprisingly."

"That's good," I said, not sure what else I _could_ say.

"You seem distant," he commented.

I sighed. "Is it stupid to say that I have this weird feeling in the pit of my stomach? It's like a mixture of fear and worry. I could barely eat this morning," I explained to him.

He glanced over to where Jack was standing, frowning slightly. His bright blue eyes seemed dilate, even if only for a moment. "I'll keep an eye on him for you, if that'll make you feel better," he offered.

I looked up at him, surprised. In a spontaneous moment, I threw my arms around him. "Thank you! I'm lucky that you're in his unit now," I told him.

"The luckiest," he muttered. "Keep an eye on Gabbie for me though, alright?"

I smiled as I pulled away. "Of course! It shouldn't be to hard, considering she's so close to Leon now."

He seems to flinch. "However you do, I don't really care. I just want her to be safe."

Normally, I'd ask "why?" but I knew about Alex, and Alex knew Albert, which was probably like putting a target on your back in certain groups of the world.

Gabbie suddenly walked in, surprising Henry as she jumped on his back. He started chuckling as he straightened up from the impact, holding her thighs.

"Hi Becky!" She waved her hand as if this one of the most normal things in the world.

Henry tilted his head back slightly. "How did you _get_ here? You don't drive."

"Leon was coming over here, so I came with him," she said, smiling.

"Leon?" I looked around and saw the said blond talking to Krauser. *When did he get here?*

I let the two of them talk-it looked pretty serious-and stayed where I was to talk to Henry and Gabbie, who eventually did get off of him.

A few minutes before the unit was about to leave, Alex came in, shuffling across the floor with his head down. It was like he was a hurt puppy.

Henry instantly smiled when he saw Alex come over, and the two of us were forgotten as he went over to the older man.

I looked over at Krauser and saw that Leon had finally walked away from him, which led me to go over to him.

I hugged him again, putting my face against his chest.

"Are you gonna be alright?" he asked me softly.

"Maybe," I told him. "Come back in one piece."

He kissed my forehead and I couldn't tell if it was supposed to be in a romantic or platonic way.

"Stay in one piece," he told me before pulling away. "See you in a few weeks, Cupcake."

I swallowed hard. "Bye Jack."

* * *

**_Author's Note:_** Hello everyone! I wasn't kidding when I said I might not be able to post Friday or Sunday, but y'all didn't seem to mind much anyways. I think I said that there was going to be some cute stuff for Leon & Gabbie, but it turned out that there wasn't any place to put said cute stuff... (even though this was my longest chapter...)

Alright, I wanted to tackle something that I've been meaning to, but just kept forgetting. I've been asked a few times about how long this was supposed to continue (RE5 or...) or if I was still writing more (?) . So, to let the answers be known to everyone, the storyline is supposed to continue _through_ RE6, and would probably end in the vicinity of January 2014 (for the storyline.) In all honesty, when I first started writing this in late July, I thought I would be able to finish it before October 12 (the release date of Pokémon X & Y) but it's obviously not going to be finished. So, since the new Pokémon games are coming out Saturday, I'm trying to give all of you fair warning that I'm going to be playing that all weekends cuz I have a three day weekend, and I'm a die hard Pokémon fan, so I'm once again not sure how well/efficient my posting will be. I'm trying to write ahead so I don't have to worry about it, but still.

Okay, thank you for dealing with that if you did read it! I appreciate you all so very much :) Also, just to let you know, the next chapter will be from Henry's POV! *cheers.* Oh, and thanks for over 5,000 views! Pwetty pwease weview?

Okay, I'll shut up now, ciao!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	36. Chapter 36

_**Henry**_

"Why is it so cold?" I heard someone ask.

I looked down at the other members of my unit from my perch in a tree. If I could hear them talking from up here, we had issues. But I stayed up here, leaning against the main body of the tree. I had the branch straddled and my sniper rifle in its own perch, perfectly safe and balanced.

Over my intercom, I heard Krauser talking. "You alright up there? I don't need you getting frostbite."

I noticed his lack of the SOCOM code names, but I didn't say anything about that. "Yeah, I'm fine. Been through worse."

"Alright, let me know if you need to come down. Silverdax out."

I didn't respond because I saw a flicker of movement underneath the tree branches. I lifted my sniper rifle off of the branches,focusing on the figure.

_Not one of us for sure._ The figure was smaller than Piers, so unless it was a highly trained small person, they shouldn't prove to be much of a problem.

I waited until I was sure that the person was by the unit, if not heading towards it.

I pressed the button for the intercom. "Un-identified figure in the northeast heading southwest. Approximately four and a half feet."

"Got it," a girl's voice said.

I waited, not sure how to proceed. I was not used to stopping for the night. In fact, most of my missions shouldn't take more than twenty-four hours. However, the USSOCOM clearly operated differently. They enjoyed making things as long as freaking possible. No wonder Rebecca was worried about Krauser-I'd probably would be too, if I were in her position.

But I wasn't, and it was Alex and Gabbie back home. Not to mention Albert, even though I rarely saw him anymore-he was always in the lab, hellbent on 'saving' Steve.

The intercom talked again. "It's a child. She says she wants to talk to Korozov."

I froze. What kid would know that I was in SOCOM, let alone here? "Y'all need to get better at keeping quiet," I muttered under my breath.

I waited for Krauser to tell me to come down. Until then, I was staying in my tree.

I didn't have to wait long.

"Come on, get over here."

* * *

_I've never seen that kid. Never._

She was all bones but when he looked up at me, she gave me a bittersweet smile. "Save my parents!"

_Parents?_

"Kid-"

"Kat," she said, her thick accent not present as she did.

"Kat," I resumed, faltering but only for a moment, "I don't know how I'm supposed to."

"You can! You are savior," her thick accent reflected that of the surrounding area. As she spoke, my mind was racing for who this little girl was. How did she know me? How did she know that we were here? It should've been impossible. It _was_ impossible, if everyone was doing their jobs right.

"How am I supposed to help you?"

"My parents are in building. They pinned under, and I not free them. They ask for you."

Warning bells went off in my head. I looked over to Krauser, who was looking at the little girl. I raised my eyebrows, knowing that out of anyone of us, he probably had the clearest head.

"The two of us will go if you show us this building," he told her.

My eyes widened. I was about to protest, but I knew it wouldn't do much, if anything.

_Is he asking for a death wish? He must be. He can't be thinking clearly. Was this what worried Rebecca? This had to be what was worrying her. No person in their right mind would just walk out of camp so easily, for something so damn stupid. Two people. Who cares? I don't._

I folded my arms as we walked behind the girl. Krauser chuckled, frost coming out as he did so. "How old are you again, Korozov?"

"Twenty-four," I told him. "Your age, if I'm not mistaken."

"You're not," he said.

We walked behind Kat, both of us on alert. Every time there was a branch or piles of leaves crunched under foot, I had to remind myself that I would hear any other people's heartbeat.

Why was I on edge now? What was going on?

The girl suddenly rushed ahead, a cry escaping her throat. "Mama! Papa!"

We went right to behind her. Krauser remained stoic, but I swore. Half of the side of a building had collapsed, and the other was starting to lean over.

"C'mon, we better hurry," my comrade told me.

"Are you serious? This could all be a trap!" I reminded him.

"It's not," he snapped.

The little girl looked up at me. "Please."

* * *

The deserted town reminded me too much of my home town, had a nuclear explosion left everyone dead. Greyish-white stone buildings gave off the feelings of being husks, since no lights were on.

A wind blew and Kat rushed further ahead.

A chill rushed up my spine. I looked around again, searching for anything. "'Dax, this doesn't feel right."

He looked over his shoulder. "Just trust me, alright?"

_Trust. I trust Albert and Alex, and Gabbie if she's sober. But Jack Krauser? I've known him for less than a month. And if he had any brain in that head, he wouldn't trust me that much either…_

We went into the building. "Hurry, they're this way!" she told us as she rushed up a set of ancient looking stairs.

We went up with more caution, considering we weighed around twice as much as she did.

When we walked into the room that we'd seen the girl into, she was gone. There was no door opened, but there was a window. Krauser walked through, just as I opened my mouth to tell him not to.

The floor gave out underneath him and I lurched forward to grab him, but I missed him. Thank god he was holding on to the edge of the hole.

"Don't move," I said as I crouched down.

"Like I have a choice," he said, his voice strained.

I glanced at his face as I took his right forearm into my hands. If I dropped him, he'd break his back, or worse, do something to his neck. He'd be dead.

I could hear Wesker's voice in my head. He was telling me to let him go. _That_ would make _his_ life easier.

Then I remembered how Rebecca had asked me to watch Krauser. How I had promised and she had hugged me like I was a god or something.

I pulled Krauser up, tapping into the reserve of strength I had from the virus. He grunted as his knee hit against the floor, but besides that, he didn't look like he had any real injuries.

"Thanks," he told me. "You were right about the girl."

"It's not something I enjoy being right about," I explained to him. "C'mon, we better head back to camp."

He suddenly got a distant look. "How _did_ that girl know you?"

I paused, thinking about it again. It'd been a long while since I'd been on a mission around here, and I was rather sure there were no Umbrella research centers here, or if there were, they were inactive.

"I have no idea."

We walked out of the building, on guard once more. My mind was churning, and I was pretty sure Krauser's was muddled with the need for sleep.

"Besides your family, how many people know you're on a mission?" he asked me, breaking the quiet.

"No one that you don't know," I said to him. That was the truth, as far as I knew it, considering I didn't have friends outside of Gabbie, Alex, and Albert, along with Krauser's friends (and therefore Krauser himself).

There was no one, unless Alex had said something to someone without realizing what he was saying (an all too common occurrence). But no one really had a vendetta against me to send a little girl to take us to a building that I would presumably die in...

Unless...

My realization almost came a second too late. I turned around, pushed Krauser down, and that dropped down myself just a barbed tail hit the ground, right where my comrade just had been. It was attached to a cross between a large bear and a wolf, except hairless.

I pulled out my pistol, cursing under my breath for not bringing something better; my sniper rifle was left at camp, since it was too large to carry around for what had supposed to been a civilian rescue.

The B.O.W. shied away from me, for reasons I'd never understand, before going over to Krauser. I got up and launched myself at the monster, causing it to stumble to the side. It snapped its jaws at me, trying to get a decent piece of me, but I wasn't close enough.

A second later I felt the creature become relaxed, and I looked up in confusion.

Krauser was standing over the now severed head, green oozing out of the neck.

"Care to explain?" he asked me.

I slowly got up. "Not really."

"Henry, I've almost been killed _twice_ within an hour! I deserve a fucking explanation, and don't give me any bull," he told me.

"My old employer wanted to shut me up," I told him.

"Old employer?" he repeated. "Who the hell did you work for? The mafia?"

"No. And I'm sure that the less you know, the safer you'll be. So let's get back."

"How do you know there's not more of _them_?" he asked me, jerking his thumb to the quickly disintegrating carcass.

"Call it a gut extinct."

He rolled his eyes. "Fine, Korozov, I'm trusting you. You did save me twice."

I sighed. "Thanks. I'd rather not argue with you right now."

We walked in silence, not speaking about what had just happened. I was still trying to figure out why Umbrella thought I would betray them. I wanted to know if it had been Alex that had said something, because if it had been, I was pretty screwed.

We got back to the camp and I started counting heads. _Twelve. Good, they're all there._

"Maybe we should leave," I suggested.

Jack nodded and went over to the unit leader. I found my rifle and slung it over my back. I was constantly listening for more B.O.W.s, and I found myself on edge. If anyone saw one, they'd panic. Hysteria was a horrible thing and I didn't feel like being caught in the middle of highly trained soldiers flipping out.

A gunshot went off and caused me to jump. I looked around for the source of the noise, and then found the person…

Standing next to Krauser.

It was the woman who'd let Kat in. This woman was blonde, older than us. A more experienced soldier.

A woman with more to lose.

_When I get home, I'm going to wring Albert's neck._

"Holly, put the gun down. We can talk this through," Krauser said, remaining calm. His eyes briefly flicked over to me as I slowly walked over.

"They have my daughter."

_Classic. Umbrella really needs to come up with better ideas._

"Holly, we can get her as soon as this mission is over."

"They want him dead before tomorrow!" she told him.

I was weighing the choices in my head; die and possibly let B.O.W.s catch the unit by surprise, not to mention miss out on everything with everyone back home… Or kill this bitch and cover it up. I wasn't about to die now after everything I'd been through.

"Korozov," Krauser growled, moving over to me, presumably to block the line of a bullet.

Holly freaked. She pulled the bullet and I fell to the ground, grabbing Jack as I did.

_Where is everyone?_

I looked around, trying to figure out what was going on.

"Cover your mouth," I told him.

"What?"

"Hold your breath," I told him before pulling him up. Looking around, this place was dead. Holly looked at us, aiming again, but shaking so badly it wouldn't be worth much.

I ran out of there, pulling Jack by the back of his shirt. By the time we stopped five minutes later, we were seven miles away from the camp and he was passed out. I looked back just in time to see where we were go up in flames.

* * *

"So you're telling me you know nothing at all?" the interrogator asked me.

"Krauser and I went to help this little girl and we discovered it was a trap. We got out of the building just in time to see the flames in the distance. I have no idea what had happened," I explained to her.

"Lots of good people died," she said. I knew she was trying to provoke me to say something in addition, but it wasn't gonna work. Three days later and all I knew is that Alex had known nothing-when I got back, he was fretting over me, asking me why I was back so soon.

I was at square one. And, thank god, Krauser must've hit his head somewhere along the way because all he remembered was falling through the floor of the building. So, since we were by ourselves, we had to locate a place for Krauser to call HQ.

And here we were.

"You do realize that we could fire you without a second thought. You came with a sketchy background to start with and now you are one of two people alive after a _disaster_ to your unit."

_Usually it's just me. They should consider themselves lucky…_

"Then fire me," I told her. I rested my chin on my hand. "Do you think I can't find a job somewhere else-for _someone_ else?" I asked her.

She flinched in surprise. "I will see you tomorrow," she told me as she got up, the chair making an inconvenient scraping noise against the floor.

"Have a good day, Mrs. Harper," I said as she walked out.

I took a moment to gather myself together. Alex was waiting in the lobby, having taken the day off. He was worried about me because I hadn't told him everything that had happened.

I got up and walked out, putting my hands in my pockets as I walked down the hall. Alex got up from the chair he'd been sitting on, coming over and checking me over, as if he thought they'd torture me in the two hours we'd been apart.

"I was scared," he admitted as I pulled away slightly.

"Whatever. I just want to go home."

I heard him sigh. "Do you wanna go grab something to eat? I haven't seen you eat anything."

"Maybe because you're always in the lab?" I pointed out as we walked through the doors.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him frown.

"Albert is always in the lab too, but you're never mad at him," he reminded me.

"Alex, just stop," I told him.

He grabbed my hand. "What's wrong? Tell me, alright? Henry, I-"

"I'm walking home. I'll see you later."

A noise escaped his mouth that was probably supposed to be surprise. "Henry-" he reached out to touch me, but I moved away.

"Bye."

"Bye," he said, sounding defeated. I threw my keys over my shoulder and I heard him catch them. He walked over to the Firebird, but didn't get into it until I was out of hearing range.

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Yet another ridiculously long chapter -_- and this one has about as much point as tough silk. So, if there's anything you need clarification on, ask, and I will be happy to explain it to you! All of you readers are absolutely wonderful and I also love pm-ing :)

I also wanted to let y'all know that I'm going to try to update this story on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and one weekend day.

Um, I thinks that's it for this time... Please review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	37. Chapter 37

_**Rebecca**_

I curled up against Krauser. He was halfway between consciousness and sleeping, but that was fine. His arm was around me, holding me but not suffocating me.

"Are you alright?" he asked me, slowly wrapping my hair around his fingers.

"Just glad you're home," I told him before sitting up slightly and placing a light kiss on his lips. He smiled as I pulled away and got up. "Hungry?"

"Do you have chicken noodle soup left?" he asked me, looking over the couch at me.

"Yep! Want some bread, too?"

"Sure," a smile appeared on his face.

A few minutes later and I brought two bowls of chicken noodle soup, one with bread and the other with crackers, and sat down on the couch, giving Krauser his.

We had the TV on to the news, eating in a comfortable silence. After we were both done, I sat there for a moment. I didn't expect him to get up, and he didn't. We both put our bowls on the coffee table, thoughts dominating our minds.

"How's your head?" I asked him.

"Fine. I'm just tired."

I leaned over and pressed another kiss against his cheek before I got up again. "Are you going to be alright? I'm gonna head to the bar."

"Yeah, I'll call you if I need to," he told me.

"Alright! See you when I get home," I said to him as I put on my jacket, slipped into my shoes, grabbed my bag, and left.

When I got to Stiletto, I instantly noticed him at the bar. Henry was hunched over, drinking even though it wasn't much past eleven. He looked up as the door closed, blue eyes shining.

I went into the storage room and then came back out. I went over to the man, not caring that the few other people in the cafe/bar was making sure to give him a wide berth. I sat down on the stool that wasn't occupied by his jacket and then leaned against the bar.

"Good morning," I said, keeping a smile on my face.

I was given a glare in response.

I did the next tactic I could think of and reached out to touch his back. His shifted slightly, looking at me again.

"I'm going to make a bet that what you just went through wasn't the worst thing that's ever happened," I told him.

He sighed. "I would've let him die if it hadn't been for you."

I didn't expect him to be so open about it, but it just came out like that. I stayed silent, letting him finish his thoughts if there were any others. After all, I'd discovered that bartenders might as well be underpaid therapists.

"You know, you should just fucking choose. Do you want Krauser, or do you want Wesker? Break one of them now so they might have time to heal," he told me before taking a languid sip of lager.

I couldn't imagine Wesker truly missing me. It seemed incomprehensible-I was _twenty_ years younger, and… and _beneath_ him.

I stared at Henry, waiting for him to say even more.

He did.

"You know, soldiers get messed up. I think it's unavoidable. Alex could probably tell you how many times he's woken up to me going through yet another nightmare in a cold sweat. I bet he even keeps count.

"But. Albert isn't much better." Luminous blue eyes looked up at me. "You'd probably fare better with Krauser."

I slowly nodded, listening but at the same time, not really. I got up and went over to the phone, dialing Leon's apartment.

"Kennedy," I heard him say.

"Hey, it's Becky. Is Gabbie there?" I asked him.

"Yeah, why?"

"I need her to get Henry-he's going to drive me _insane_ if he stays here," I explained to him.

He sighed. "Alright, we'll come get him."

I mentally chastised myself as I remembered Gabbie couldn't drive (well). "Alright, see ya soon."

"Bye Becky," he said warmly before we hung up.

I looked over and saw that Henry was leaning over the bottle over more, _and_ closer to his lips. He sat up suddenly, hand wrapped around the bottle, and tilted his head back.

I glanced over to Marissa, almost afraid. He seemed unstable. He never drank this much, and in my head, I was remembering my father.

"Rebecca?" the cool voice came from behind me and I jumped slightly. I looked up and saw _him_ standing there. He was wearing his sunglasses, covering his red eyes.

"Wesker," I said softly.

He cocked his head slightly, staring at me. "I knew you worked at a bar, yet…"

I raised an eyebrow. "Did you think it was going to be a five star establishment with gold embellishments on the poker table lined walls?" I asked him.

"No. I was just surprised for it to be like this."

"Whatever," I said to him, not even bothering to ask him about anything. I was done. Absolutely done. "If you're here to collect Henry, he's right over there."

"I wanted to talk to you first," he told me.

"Just leave." I moved to get to go to the tables, but he stopped me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Leave me alone," I restated softly.

He leaned down, his breath tickling the left side of my neck. "That doesn't sound too convincing; you must not really want it," he told me as his fingertips lightly brushed against my neck.

I shuddered against me. "I'm at work," I reminded him.

"There's a storage room right over there," he said, tilting his head towards the indicated area.

I squirmed. "Don't. Please, not here…" How would I explain this to Leon if he saw us? He would tell Krauser and then Krauser would… he wouldn't trust me.

"Then where?" the blond man over me asked.

I hesitated for a second. "Where do you want it?" I asked him. "It has to be some place where no one knows me." My eyes had been shut, but when I noticed that he hadn't moved at all, I opened them, looking at him. "Is something wrong?"

A smirk was on his lips as his two hands moved to on either side of my head. "You're embarrassed."

I blinked as that realization settled in. "Tell me you're not embarrassed that you've been with _me._"

This situation was becoming increasingly uncomfortable as he seemed to be leaning in bit by bit. He raised an eyebrow slightly before speaking. "Embarrassed? Why would I be embarrassed by you? You made it through several trials in life, coming out stronger through every one."

_Was I stronger after Raccoon City?_ My forearms itched-phantom pain-from the thought.

As if reading my mind, his thumbs lifted up the sleeves of my shirt, revealing the scars. "These made you stronger."

I watched him, my heart aching. I wanted to tell him that I could leave work right then and there, but the door opened and I instantly heard Gabbie. I pulled away from Wesker, wiping the swelling tears off of my face.

"Hey," I said as I saw Leon standing there. He came over to me, looking concerned.

"Is something wrong? Your eyes are red."

I swallowed and nodded. "Yeah, I'm good. Can you two just get Henry outta here? Ain't the best person, ya know."

As I was talking to Leon, Gabbie was over with Henry, trying to pry his fifth beer bottle out of his hand. "Come on, let's get you home. I'm sure Alex is worrying about you."

"Go in a corner and smoke another joint, will you? You're not worth a dime to anyone," he slurred.

Leon and I looked over to them, surprised. Gabbie just patiently sat at the neighboring stool, slowly reaching out.

"Please Henry…"

"Go away," he growled.

She got up, shaking, and stared at Leon. She walked out, not even bothering to say anything to me. My blond friend gave me an apologetic smile and then walked out after Gabbie.

Wesker came out from the hall, put a fifty on the bar, and then grabbed Henry by his shirt. The younger man twisted in the hold, letting out a feral growl. I thanked god that there wasn't anyone in here now-Piers was with Billy for the day and Marissa had gone into the kitchen.

"Cut it out," my one night lover told him.

Bright blue eyes looked up to darkly tinted sunglasses. "Get off of me," he said before he started squirming.

He was hauled up by both hands. "You need to get a better grip on yourself," Wesker growled.

Henry grabbed his right arm with his left hand. "Done."

Wesker sighed. "I'm going to get you home," he told Henry as he lowered his head.

"Alright Dad," he slurred.

My eyes widened as the door opened and closed. _Dad? There's no way… Henry is twenty-four, and Wesker is what, thirty-nine now? Wesker's done some pretty weird things… That has to be impossible. Please let it be impossible._

Right then, Marissa came out from the kitchen. "Are you alright? You look startled."

"You could say that," I said softly.

"I hope Henry never acts like that again. I'm glad Piers wasn't here to see him."

I nodded. "Agreed." I sighed and tugged at my hair after sitting down at a bar stool, since there was no one here. _Did he just do that? He probably did… Walk in, walk out. God, he's such a jackass._

But at the same time, my stomach had knots in it, remembering what'd I'd ask him, more than likely leading him to assume that I wanted to sleep with him again.

My thoughts were cut off abruptly as the door opened. I looked up, internally wanting it to be Wesker.

Yet, in fact, the person who walked in was quite the opposite.

For starters, his brown hair was still spiked up and he was currently wearing a leather jacket, blue jeans, and work boots. A little bit of scruff was present on his face, but not enough to be appalled by it. In fact, it gave him a certain appealing ruggedness.

However.

"Chris?" came out, my voice shocked.

He looked over at me and smiled, almost as if I was still the new member of S.T.A.R.S. and he was the 'jokester/buffoon-who-liked-to-piss-Wesker-off,' and we were completely platonic-meaning that was before both me moving into Wesker's house and the Arklay incident. _Oh god, we haven't talked since then. What has it been? Seven months?_

"I was in town and thought I'd stop by," he explained to me as he came over. I got off of the stool, brushing the front of me off, almost as I thought that would erase the way I'd acted with Wesker less than a half hour ago. "You look really good, Rebecca."

"Please, just call me Becky," I told him, blushing slightly.

"Alright then. Becky, you look wonderful," he restated.

I almost wanted to say I had a boyfriend, but Marissa saved me.

"So you are Chris Redfield? I've heard quite a bit about you," she told him. "Can we get you anything to eat?"

I saw his body tense, almost as if he was upset. _Uh… He wasn't trying to flirt with me, was he? Somebody needs to tell me that he wasn't actually hitting on __**me.**_

"Sure. What do ya have?" he asked her. She led him away to a table and I slipped away to the storage room. I sat down on the floor, surrounded by racks of supplies. I was scared… My world felt like it was falling apart again, except this time it was much, much faster. I shuddered from a sudden shiver, and I tried to calm down, but it was impossible. Leon had almost seen me with Wesker, and if Chris had been here a few moments earlier, he would've seen Wesker here.

_I'm walking a line thinner than an acrobat's. Why did I even let Wesker… Why am I so weak?_

I brought my knees up to rest my chin on, and stared at an apple. The red fruit was shining in the light, and I realized that under different circumstances, I would find it more appealing than usual. However, it started to look like blood, turning my stomach at the thought. I got up and rushed to the bathroom, bending over the toilet before I started puking like I was hungover.

* * *

So I'm writing this on October ninth, so before Pokemon comes out, but just to let y'all know, if it sucks, I'll write this instead. Also, (and I'm testing the waters with this) how would you feel if if I didn't update all of November?

Please review!

~_HolleringHawk65_


	38. Chapter 38

**_Wesker_**

I was silent on the whole drove home, mostly due to the fact Henry was leaning against the car door in a very Rebecca like fashion, his eyes closed because of the conviently bright sun.

"I'm sorry," he said softly as we went down the driveway.

"Apologize to Alex and Gabbie," I told him. I couldn't believe he even brought up her past addiction, especially in front of those who were her friends now. There were lines that even I hadn't _considered_ crossing.

He didn't say anything as I parked the car. He stayed in his seat, so I stayed in mine. I might be willing to play this game for however long it would take for him to get his act together.

"Is Alex upset with me?" Henry asked, staring at our house.

"If upset means fretting over you, then yes, extremely so."

He sighed. "Why do we do this to each other?" he muttered.

I got up. "If at anytime you feel like going inside, I'll assume you still know how to walk."

He shot dagger eyes up at me, but remained silent. He leaned against the door again, yet another sigh escaping his lips. "See you later," he told me.

I went into the garage, instantly noticing that the house had a different kind of feel. I cautiously walked into the hall, mentally noting the silence.

A door slamming caused led to my conclusion that Alex and Gabbie were home. I went upstairs and I found the latter sitting on the floor, crying. I stopped next to her as I noted her shaking. I crouched down and slowly touched her shoulder, causing her to instantly turn around and throw her arms around me.

"What's wrong?" I asked her as I ran my fingers through her hair.

"Alex...he's threatening to leave and be on Umbrella's side for real. He thinks that if-if Henry really d-doesn't l-love him, n-none of th-this matters."

_He didn't say that...the plan…_

I got up abruptly, causing Gabbie to fall against the wall. I walked the few feet down the hall and then walked into Alex's room.

Like a heart broken teenaged girl, he was lying with the shades drawn and curled up on his bed.

"Henry is in the driveway," I told him. I wasn't sure how Alex would react, but I was on the thought that he might flip out. Instead, he got up, grabbing a robe and slipping it over his flannel pajamas. I smirked as I went back to Gabbie, helping her up. She sniffled as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Are you going to be alright?" I asked her.

"I-I might be…"

I got her to her bedroom just as I heard Alex drop Henry at the top of the stairs. I softly laid her down on the bed and then brought the blanket up. She was shaking slightly even as the wool formed around her, and I quickly realized it was because she was sobbing.

"Gabbie," I started softly, feeling as if I was a curious scientist and she was a timid deer that I was trying to lure to myself.

She sat up, bringing her hands to her cheeks. "I hate this. I hate that Henry feels like he can just randomly fall apart on us, and that Alex thinks it's okay to just leave this behind." A cry escaped her throat. "I hate that I can't even bring Leon home because God only knows if he'll put two and two together and than Chris will come and he-_you'll_…"

I shifted slightly to bring her to my chest. She cried into it, clutching at my shirt. "Nothing will happen to me, I promise you," I told her, softly resting my head on hers.

The crying started to soften and I began to hear shoving going on down the hall in Henry and Alex's bathroom. I was suddenly very, very glad that Gabbie didn't have the superhuman abilities that the three of us did. I resisted shuddering at the thought if she did.

"You can't promise me that, just like you can't promise Rebecca that you'd be there for her if something bad ever happened to her because it did and you weren't there!" she pulled away, hazel eyes darker than usual. "You're a liar!"

"Gabbie-"

"No! You are! Alex once told me that you would've done anything for the Birkins and look at them now! William and Annette _dead_ and Sherry going crazy at the government's hands! You're just as crazy if you think nothing bad will ever happen to you!" she yelled at me. She got up. "There's the door."

I got up, taller than her but not as much as I was with Rebecca. She tensed, anticipating any move that I could do.

"I'll scream," she told me.

"I doubt that they'd be able to hear you," I countered, firmly meeting her eyes. She didn't flinch away from the red irises.

"I'm not scared of you."

"Why is that?"

"Because you know that if I get hurt, Rebecca will figure out you did it. Trust me, it'd be the last straw for your relationship with her. She'd be curled up in Jack's arms with an instant."

"What makes you think she'd know it was me?"

"Because Alex is my dear brother and Henry had her watching me while he was away in exchange for watching Krauser. We're closer than you think," she all but spat. "So, tell me, how are you going to do it? Deadly virus? Noose? How about throwing me off the roof of the house? The possibilities _are _endless when it comes to you, _Wesker_."

I stepped away from her. "Do you think I'm a monster? That I would kill you for little to no reason?"

"I know I'm an inconvenience because I reject your precious Progenitor virus. If I can't be one of you, what's the point in my life? I was a drug addicted party girl."

"I also ran into a burning building to save your life once," I told her. She paled-obviously no one had told her that. "Alex was in the middle of testing a new virus for Umbrella, so he sent me to get you from your last foster home. As you might remember, a fire had occurred when you had started playing with matches in the pantry, which conveniently had alcohol stored in the corner. The flames begun and you were trying to get away when your sleeve got caught. You were struggling with it, your little ten year old self desperate to get away from the heat, when you blacked out. No one was home and I knew I couldn't wait for the fire truck as I saw the house burning down, so I went in and saved you. For Alex."

Her eyes were wide as I walked out. I went downstairs to the lab to get my mind off of everything-Chris, Rebecca, Jack Krauser, Sherry, Leon, Gabbie, Henry, Alex-except for Steve.

Taking a breather, I sat in front of the chamber, staring at the comatose body. I'd seen pictures of his father and I had to say that there wasn't too much of a resemblance on their part.

I turned my head, trying to see if a different angle would make them resemble more. But, no, I still couldn't see it.

I got up and checked the vitals, sighing as I did. In theory, if he kept up a steady regimen of pills, there was no reason to believe he wouldn't be able to live a normal life.

Theory though, isn't reality. I wouldn't want him to die again just because I was wrong.

I ran my hands through my hair, heart hammering. Anticipation? Not likely. Fear? Possible. If Alex truly did default to Umbrella, wholly and completely, everything would be over before it had the chance to truly fly.

"Al, are you alright?"

_I must be dreaming._

I looked up and saw Birkin, a smile on his face. "What's the matter? Don't want to go to the party tomorrow night?"

_Party?_

"Aw, don't give me that look. You know, the one where Annie and I are announcing our second child?"

"What?" I sputtered out, looking around. I was no longer in the dark lab below the mansion I shared with Alex, Henry, and Gabbie. No, I was back at the Umbrella laboratories. But this was impossible; they were _gone._

_The only explanation is that the virus has finally taken its toll and I'm crazy. But I'm capable of thought… Maybe this is a lucid dream?_

"Did you seriously forget? You seriously forgot! Yeesh, has the end of the world come three years early?"

"Three?"

William stared at me blankly. "Did you get exposed to something? Don't you remember that it's 1997?"

_Definitely a dream._

"Right, now I remember," _I guess._

"Are you sure? Feel free to go the med bay incase you spilled something on yourself. You're starting to get a little careless."

"I'm fine," I assured the apparition of my now dead ex best friend.

He nodded. ""I'm just so excited for tomorrow night. It's a little weird in my opinion to be doing it on Valentine's day, but that's what Annie wanted, so it's what she'll get."

_He really did try to please her, or at least when he wasn't crazy._

He sighed. "Why do you think Alex is being such a hard ass? I don't care that he's some big shot from New York, he's younger than both of us _and_ he's never even been here before!"

"What?" I said before I could stop myself; the sudden change of topic had caught me off guard.

Will rolled his eyes. "Of course you wouldn't realize it; you grew up together. Dude, your brother is an ass."

"Right."

"So are you coming early to help set up tomorrow? I don't want Annie stressing, but she wants the living room rearranged and Sherry will be at her friend's house."

"Friends?" I repeated.

"Yeah, the Burtons. I'm so proud that she's finally being social. I was worried that she'd end up like me, with only a jackass for a best friend!" Will teased, smiling.

I smiled in return, not realizing until then that I'd truly missed working with him. S.T.A.R.S. was almost not worth it, looking back on it.

"Are you coming?" he asked me again.

"What time do you want me there?" I asked him.

He checked his watch, more than likely doing calculations in his head. "I'd say about five thirty if you want to see Sherry before she leaves," he told me. "She loves seeing you. She told us that she wanted to bring you to parent's day at school instead of one of us because she thought you were cooler."

"I suppose we'll have to see how the schedules work out," I told him.

He nodded. "Definitely. We should probably get back to working on that vaccine before Alex stops in during his round, right?"

"Vaccine?"

WIlliam shook his head. "You must've banged your head on something. Remember, the stomach bug virus thing? We were supposed to make a vaccine for it? And possibly medicine?"

"Right."

We worked together, falling into an easy pattern of testing samples, recording data, exchanging data, and repeating.

I almost forgot that this wasn't real.

One of the sliding doors opened and I looked up to see Alex, except it didn't seem to be all of him. Something was lacking… His eyes looked glassy, and he looked more gaunt than lean. I also noticed that the simple band that he usually wore on his right ring finger was gone.

"How's the research going?" he asked. He even sounded tired.

William opened his mouth, and judging by the look on his face, it was going to be sarcastic.

"Fine," I told him.

Both looked over to me, apparently surprised that I had been the one to talk.

"I believe we've made progress, in fact. Don't you agree, Birkin?" I asked my fellow blond.

He quickly nodded. "Yes, I'd say we have."

Alex looked relieved. "Great. I'll see you both later, I suppose."

"See you later," we said in unison before going back to work.

Later on, we were walking out of the lab and I leaned forward to press the button for the elevator. We waited patiently, assuming it was at the bottom level. William was chattering on about the upcoming baby, and how they were going to break the news to Sherry tonight at dinner.

He stopped. "I hope she won't think that we'll only be giving attention to the baby instead of equality."

"If worst comes to worst, she can stay with me for a little while," I offered.

Will smiled. "I'm sure I'll take you up on that offer."

The elevator door opened, and sitting in the middle of it was a conscious Steve Burnside.

* * *

I suddenly came back to reality, finding myself standing over the computer. The one that had a button, very similar in size to an elevator button, that was pushed in.

Slowly, remorsefully, I looked over and saw Steve holding his head. He was sitting cross legged and hunched over, hiding his face. "I have the worst migraine," he told me before looking up, wincing as he did so. His eyes were briefly gold before returning to hazel. "Got any Advil?"

I swallowed hard. "Yeah, just give me a few minutes. I'll go get you some clothes, too," I said to him.

He blushed before I turned around. "Thank you," I heard him whisper.

"Fuck," I muttered under my breath as I climbed the stairs. How was I so stupid? How was I going to explain this to Alex? And, of all things, why did my mind conjure up a different side of Umbrella?

* * *

_**Author's Note:**_Incase no one really caught that, the whole Umbrella scenario wasn't real (which means William is alive) and it was sort of an AU where Umbrella was good and since they were good there was no G virus so Will could still be a family man. Also, when Wesker went to press the elevator button, he released Steve.

So there was that.

Oh, and Gabbie isn't a Wesker; she was in the foster system, Alex tracked her down, and, as stated, Albert saved her (because he's boss and I'm also writing this on two cans of root beer at 9-11 o'clock at night because I love you guys that much to get it done for Tuesday morning my time.)

I think that's it... Please review?

~_HolleringHawk65_


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